Shadows of the Soul
by Trafalgar Neo
Summary: Sanji stood in shock. Her body twisted & morphed as if the very shadows were trying to swallow her up. He had no idea what was happening to her. Only thing he knew for sure was he couldn't leave her lying there bleeding. So he picked her up & took a monster into their home. (fluffy fluffiness)
1. One Boy, One Girl

One Boy, One Girl

She sat hugging her knees to her chest. Her skin itched from the salt left on her skin from the water and from the sand still stuck between the iron cuffs on her wrists and ankles. A painful rumble of hunger rolled through her stomach. Tasty smells floated on the winds from the village near by called for her to come to them. But she remained sitting on the beach staring out at the cerulean horizon. Shadows from clouds above her passed overhead, temporarily blocking the hot sun from her body.

"Well, well," a man said. "Look at what we have here."

"What's such a sweet little thing doing all alone out here?" another man asked.

"I'm waiting for my master to come for me," she said. From the corner of her eyes she could see four men surrounding her.

"Your master, eh?" the first man asked.

She nodded. Shifting, the chains clinked together before going silent.

"Chains, huh? So you're someone's slave," the man said while the other three chuckled. "Well, we can't let a sweet lil' thing sit out here all by yourself. It's not safe you know. Why don't you come back home with us? We'll take _real_ good care of you until your master comes back."

More chuckling from the men.

She lifted her head slightly. Her eyes remained on the horizon.

"Come along with us. I promise you'll be safe with us. You can even stay with us if your master never comes back for you." The first man reached out and touched her shoulder. "Let's go."

She didn't move.

"I said let's go!" the man snapped.

The girl jolted. She slapped the man's hand off her shoulder and jumped to her feet. Keeping her eyes down from him she said, "I cannot go with you. I have to stay here. My master wouldn't be pleased if I leave."

"Calm down, lil' lady," the man said. "Your master won't mind one bit."

She stepped back when he reached for her again. The smile on his face faded.

"I'm not playing games with you, kid," he said. Snapping his fingers, the other three men circled around her, keeping her pin between them.

Scanning her eyes over them, she waited. Their smiles twisted into sneers as they moved in on her. Looking down at one of the men's feet she waited until he lifted his foot again. When he did her shadow slithered out. It wrapped around his ankle and jerked his leg forward. He went down with a startled gasp. Taking the opportunity she ran through the opening and down the beach. The men cursed at her but she kept running. Sand kicked up with each thump of her feet on the ground. Reaching the edge of the beach she cut up into the town and ran passed the back of the buildings and the edge of the forest.

"Come back here!" one of the men screamed.

She didn't. She knew she had to keep running. And she did. She cut to her right, entering into a small tree free opening. Suddenly something tangled in her feet and she crashed to the ground.

"You little brat!" the man she tripped hissed. "You're going to pay for that!"

She flipped around. A stick was now lying beside her feet. They had tripped her up with a stick. Still on the ground, she backed away from them until her back pressed against a tree. Her body trembled as the men moved closer to her.

…

"I can't believe how much money I saved today," Sanji said to himself. He looked to his arms and hands. They were loaded down with bags of the food he had just picked up. He squealed in delight at the thought of the two women he sailed with and the delicious meals he was going to be making for them. "Nami-swan and Robin-chwan are going to be so happy! I can't wait to get back to the ship and make them a delicate treat for their delicate bodies! Then they'll fall hopelessly in love with me!"

"Come back here!" A disgruntled voice pulled his attention from his daydreaming. Looking around he found a few other people had paused at the voice before going back to their shopping. Continuing on he looked down between two buildings and noticed a young woman with black hair running passed with a group of men chasing her. "You're going to pay for what you did!"

"Those disgusting low lives! How dare they gang up on a woman?!" Chest burning with rage, Sanji dashed towards the alley. Turning left he pause, trying to figure out where they went before continuing on. He passed by a few building and the edge of the forest before coming to an opening in the trees. Looking down he found footprints smashed into the ground. He followed them until voices met his ears. Rounding a tree he saw them. His rage crackled into an inferno to see four men surrounding the girl. "Those uncouth bastards!"

"Now, now, lil' darlin'," a man said. "We're not going to hurt ya one bit."

Two of the other men chuckled.

"You might not. But she's going to pay for tripping me like that."

"You're just upset to get flatten by a little girl."

"Shut up! She didn't even move! It was a cheap shot! She cheated!"

"You're just embarrassed you got beat by a girl."

"Shut up!" The man grabbed his friend by the front of his shirt.

"Enough," the first man said. "We're in the middle something here." He turned back to the girl. "Come on now. We just wanna have a lil' bit of fun with you that's all."

Two more steps and Sanji saw her completely. She was now on the ground as if they had shoved her. Her body trembled as she cast her eyes down away from the men.

"Now, be a good lil' girl and hold still." The man stepped closer to her. Kneeling down he grabbed her shoulders and tried to pull her shirt off.

Anger burned in Sanji's chest. He dashed forward. "Don't you dare try and touch her, you disgusting pigs!"

"Huh?" The men turned to him.

Sanji slammed his feet into their faces. Their bodies went flying away, leaving only one left. He landed on his own feet and glared down at the man who was trying to have his way with the young woman. "Now it's your turn. Let her go."

"Well," the man said looking at his fallen friends. "You're not a normal fighter, are ya?"

"No, I'm not," Sanji said. "In fact, I'm a pirate."

"A pirate you say?" he asked as he stood up.

"That's right. I'm the cook of the Straw Hat pirates to be honest," Sanji said.

"I see. So you're one of the one's who caused all that trouble at Enies Lobby," the man said. "To be honest I wasn't impressed with what you did. Those soldiers were pathetic."

"I didn't come here to talk to you about the past or what impresses you," Sanji said.

"Of course, of course." The man stepped to his left. His body turned sideways as he did.

Sanji didn't miss the move. He could tell with the careful moves of the man that he was up to something.

"Well, since I know I'm not as strong as you all are I'll just be leaving," the man said.

Sanji watched the man take one more careful step before his hand whipped out with a gun in it. He leaped into the air. Hot led and smoke filled the air with three bangs of the gun. He spun around with his leg sticking straight out. Falling back down he landed his shoe onto the man's head. Bones crackled under the pressure. "Don't ever treat a lady like that again."

The man's eyes bugged out of his head before he crumpled to the ground.

Sanji landed. "Now that the scum is taken care of." He turned back to girl. His eyes widened curiously and suspiciously. Her eyes were dark red and glaring harshly at him. Dark, sharp shadowy limbs lifted up from her shadow. They shifted and stretched before wrapping around her body. She pulled her legs under her, crouching in an animal like way. "Whoa. Hey, take it easy. I'm not going to hurt you."

A feral growl escaped her mouth.

Sanji took a step back before pausing. Something inside of him told him not to run. This girl wasn't bad. She was just scared. Slowly he placed his bags down on the ground before sitting down himself. He showed her his hands and said, "See? I have no weapons. I only wanted to help you get away from those men. They were bad, right? They were going to hurt you, weren't they?"

One of her limps shifted into a sharp point. It shot out at him, striking his cheek. His skin stung as it split open. Hot blood trickled down his cheek. Still he didn't move as she watched him carefully. He could tell she was looking for something but he wasn't sure what it was. A rumble came from her stomach. "I see. You must be hungry. I can give you something to eat. I'm sure you'll feel better after you get something warm in your tummy." He reached into one of his bags and pulled out an apple. "It's not a warm meal but you can have this. I can make you something to eat back at our ship. Would you like that?"

She didn't move. She didn't show any kind of interest in the apple. Her eyes remained on him.

"Well, would you like something else?" Sanji pulled out other fruits and vegetables from his bags, even a piece of bread, and offered then to her. She showed no interest in any of it despite the fact her stomach continued to rumble with hunger. He sighed. He really needed to get the food back to the ship but he knew he couldn't leave her. The men would be coming to at any point in time. He wasn't going to leave her to them again.

Several minutes passed before the dark limbs around her started to fade away and slip back into her shadow. The dark red of her eyes shifted to a dark yellow. She dropped to the ground. She stared at him, confused and scared.

Sanji smiled. At least she was calming down. Maybe he could get her something to eat now. "That's it. Just take it easy. I'm really not going to hurt you like those other men were. I have the utmost respect for women. And those men aren't going to hurt you either. They're knocked out now so you're safe. My name is Sanji. I know I said I was a pirate but I'm not like other pirates. I don't hurt innocent people. You really should eat something. What would you like? I can make anything."

Another rumble of hunger and the girl's body swayed. Her eyelid fluttered closed. She slumped to the ground.

The clinking of the chains drew Sanji's eyes. "What the heck?"

He scanned the cuffs around her wrists and ankles that he had somehow missed until the last link on the chains caught his eyes. He picked it up and inspected it. Each one was the same. There was a slight char to each of the links and some kind of wire sticking out in several places. He then looked at her clothes. They were slightly dingy as if she had been swimming in the ocean recently. There were also holes in the long sleeves and her pants legs. "So this girl is someone's slave. Sickening. No wonder she's cared and confused."

His eyes fell back to the shadows around her body. There was a slight shifting before they fell completely still. He hummed, wondering why her shadow did that and how it did what it did. Looking at the unconscious bodies of the men he knocked out he knew he couldn't leave her alone out here. There was no way of knowing who would wake up first. Despite knowing nothing about her, he picked his bags up before slipping his arms under her body and lifted her up. Sanji watched as the shadows shift again before settling back to normal shadows. He narrowed his eyebrows at them before turning and walking away from the scene. While walking back towards the ship he couldn't help but notice the girl didn't add much weight to the load he was already carrying. He also noticed, when the sun was shining directly on her, her hair was actually a navy blue instead of black like he had originally thought.

The crunching of the gravel beneath his shoes was silenced by the grass the closer he got to their ship. Before long the bright colors of the Sunny appeared still docked at an island point just east of the town.

"Hey!" Usopp called. "You're back already?"

"Yeah," Sanji replied.

"Huh? Who's that with you?" Usopp asked leaning farther over the ship's railing.

"Who's who?" Chopper climbed upon the railing.

Reaching the ship Sanji jumped up to the railing since it was impossible for him to carry the girl and his bags up the rope ladder. He landed on the deck with a thud. "Chopper, she needs your help."

"Oh my gosh!" Chopper waved his arms frantically. "Bring her to the infirmary! Quick!"

Sanji followed the young doctor up the stairs without a word.

"So who's the girl?" Usopp asked while following them.

"I'm not sure," Sanji said as they made their way to the back of the ship. "Some guys were trying to get rough with her. I stopped them but she passed out. I figured she could tell us who she is when she wakes up."

Chopper opened the door to the infirmary. "Go ahead and put her on the bed."

Sanji walked in and placed her down on the bed. "I'm going to put the food in the kitchen and be right back."

"Okay," Chopper said. "Usopp give me a hand."

"Sure thing." Usopp moved closer to the bed.

Sanji left the room knowing she was in good hands. He shuffled towards the kitchen and quickly put all his purchases away before rushing back to the infirmary. He wanted to be there in case the girl woke up and tried to use whatever she was using back on the island on his friends. He didn't tell them about that after all. Stepping back inside his nose was greeted with the smell of antiseptics. Chopper was bandaging a wound while Usopp was wiping her skin down with a wet cloth. "How is she?"  
"She's undernourished and one of her cuts is infected," Chopper said.

"Is it serious?" Sanji asked.

"No, she'll be fine," Chopper said. "All she needs is some rest, medication, and some good food."

"I'll fix her something a soon as she wakes up," Sanji said. He then noticed a worried look on both Chopper and Usopp's faces. "What is it? Is something wrong?"

"I could be mistaken but I believe she's been abused," Chopper said.

Sanji watched Usopp's eyes cast down to the floor before looking back at the doctor. "You mean someone took advantage of her?"

"No, not that." Chopper shook his head before pushing up the sleeve of her shirt.

Sanji's eyes widened. Along her upper arms were several circular burn marks as if someone took a cigar and pressed it to her skin. Some were old and healing while others was recently new. He growled. "What the heck?!"

"There's also something else. I tried to get the cuffs but I noticed there were some wires sticking out in places. These chains aren't normal. They're some kind of electrical device," Usopp said. "We won't know for sure until we get the cuffs off her but Chopper thinks they were used to shock her."

"Why don't you take them off then?" Sanji asked.

"There's no lock on them anywhere," Usopp said. "I thought about using some of Franky's tools but since he's better with them than I am I figured it would be best for him to do it. I don't want to hurt her."

"So what should we do now with her?" Chopper asked. "Shouldn't her, um, owner be around here somewhere?"

Sanji took a puff on his cigarette. "We'll talk to her once she wakes up. For now just let her rest."

"What about her owner or whatever?" Usopp asked.

"We're not going to let them take her back," Sanji said.

"But what if they're some seriously strong pirate? Or navy soldier or something?" Usopp said.

"We'd be in big trouble then!" Chopper screamed.

"I don't care who they are. It's wrong to abuse someone like this," Sanji said. "I'm sure Luffy won't have a problem with her being here. He won't like that she's being hurt either."

"I can understand that. But what do we do if her owner comes looking for her before he gets back here? Do you think they're on the island?" Usopp said looking back at the sleeping girl. "She kind of looks like she was shipwrecked here."

"I don't think anyone's going to be coming for her," Sanji said. "If her owner were here there's no way she would have been out on her own like she was, unless that person was dead. But it might be a good idea to check the town out and see if anyone has been found on the island that doesn't live here. In any case, she's safer here than out there." He paused, wondering if that was really the truth. "There is something you two should be aware of."

"What is it?" Usopp asked.

"This girl has some sort of devil fruit or something." Sanji turned to the sniper then to the doctor. "I'm not really a hundred percent sure of what I saw but it looked like her shadows moved."

"A devil fruit power?" Usopp said.

"Yeah. Her shadow moved before coming up around her body," Sanji explained. He brushed his thumb over the cut on his cheek. "It was really sharp whatever it was. She cut my cheek with it and even growled at me like some kind of animal."

"Do you need me to fix it?" Chopper asked.

"It's fine," Sanji said.

"Fine?! Nothing's fine! You brought some kind of animal onto the ship!" Usopp shrieked. "How could you do that?! She could be an enemy for all we know!"

"She's not an enemy," Sanji said before dropping his foot onto Usopp's head. "And don't call her an animal. She's a scared little girl. And she's staying here."

Usopp gritted his teeth while holding his throbbing head. "That hurt."

"There's nothing to be worried about," Sanji said. "She's not going to hurt anyone. In any case Luffy and the others should be back any minute. We can discuss the matter then. Chopper, you stay with her in case she wakes up. Usopp and I will go keep a look out for the crew and if anyone comes for her. Come get me if she does wake up."

"Right." Chopper nodded.

Shoving his hands into his pocket, Sanji left the room with Usopp following him. Reaching the deck he perched upon the railing and kept his eyes out on the island while Usopp kept his eyes on the ocean. His brain went over everything that had just happened. If the girl had a devil fruit why didn't she defend herself from the start? Why did she run away from those men? Surely she was capable of taking care of herself. But then the burn marks on her arms came back to mind. Maybe those were from keeping her _from_ using her powers. He cast a glance over at Usopp when the sniper started talking to himself.

"This is just great. I know we're going to get in a fight." Usopp clung to his Kabuto like his life depended on it as his eyes scanned for danger. "No one puts chains on someone unless they are a captive. And no one lets a captive go without a fight. I don't want to fight again. Not after all that mess we had to deal with on Thriller Bark. How strong are they going to be this time?"  
Sanji turned his eyes back to the island. He was thinking the same things as well. He wasn't really looking for another fight so soon, but he would do it if he had to. He would defend his ship, crew, and even the girl he knew nothing about.

The wind blew, teasing his hair as the minutes passed. Then finally, after an hour of waiting, the rest of his crew came walking towards the ship. They climbed on board. "Finally. You're back."

"What's wrong, Sanji?" Nami asked.

"We got a bit of a situation," Sanji said. "While out shopping I had to rescue a young woman from some scum."

"And why should we care about that?" Zoro asked.

"Shut up, moss head," Sanji said. "The problem is she has chains on her wrists and ankles. Plus, there are several burn marks on her arms. Chopper figures she's been abused since she's also undernourished."

"That's terrible," Brook said. "Who would do such a thing?"

"And there's one other thing you all should know about," Sanji said. "The shadow's around her were acting weird."

"What do you mean by that?" Franky asked.

"I'm not sure but it's possible she might have a devil fruit power," Sanji said. "I'm not really even sure what I saw. But the shadows around her were moving as if they were alive. She cut my cheek with it while growling at me."

"Growling?" Robin said.

"That's so cool! I want to see it! Where is she?!" Luffy screamed.

"Knock it off!" Sanji dropped his foot onto Luffy's head. "She's still passed out in the infirmary. And you're not going to bother her. Chopper's looking after her for the time being." He looked to Franky. "We need you to remove the cuffs from her. They're apparently some kind of electrical device with no lock on them."

"Uh, sure thing," Franky said.

"I figured the rest of us could go back into town and see if anyone knows anything about her," Sanji said. "And see if anyone else washed ashore from a possible shipwreck."

"What?! But I want her to stay!" Luffy said. "She could join our crew!"

"Luffy, don't be stupid," Nami said. "We don't know anything about her. For all we know she has a family that lives here. Maybe she was trying to get back here to them."

"That is possible," Robin said. "We should ask around just to make sure. If no one knows her then we can decide what to do from there."

"Shall we go back to the town then?" Brook asked.

"We'll go. Franky you get those cuffs off her," Sanji said.

"You got it." Franky headed inside of the ship.

"What does she look like?" Brook asked.

"Navy blue hair and dark eyes that some how can change from red to yellow," Sanji said.

"Her eyes change colors? That's so cool!" Luffy said, his eyes shining like stars.

"Her skin is a dark beige as if she's spent a lot of time in the sun," Sanji continued as if Luffy didn't say anything.

After the description of the girl the rest of the Straw Hats put away their shopping bags before disembarking once more. Down on the ground Sanji paused and looked back to the ship. He wondered if it was fine to leave Chopper and Franky alone with the girl and vise versa. They could scare her if she woke up before he got back. He turned away and continued on to the town. "She'll be fine. I won't be gone long."

Stepping back into the bustling village, he walked over to a man. "Excuse me, sir. Could I ask you a question?"

"What is it?" The man looked to the pirate.

"Do you know of a young woman with long hair navy blue hair and dark colored eyes that can manipulate shadows?" Sanji asked.

"Manipulate shadows?" The old man lifted his hat and scratched his head. "She a devil fruit user?"

"Possibly," Sanji said.

"Let's see. Manipulates shadow, navy blue hair, and dark color eyes? Sorry." The man shook his head. "No. I'm afraid I don't know anyone like that."

"Thank you, sir." Sanji walked off. Spotting a group of women his heart pounded with excitement. He rushed over to them. "Ladies! Don't you look lovely today?"

The women giggled.

"Pardon the interruption, but I have a question to ask of you," Sanji said with a bow.

"I hope it doesn't have to do with marriage," one of them said. "Because we're all married."

"I should have known such beauties were already taken." Sanji straightened up and shoved his hands in his pockets. "But, no, that's not it. I was wondering if any of you knew of a young girl with long navy blue hair and dark color eyes who can manipulate shadows."

"I've never even heard of manipulating shadow before. I guess she's a devil fruit user. I don't know anyone like that. Do you two know anyone like that?"  
"No, I don't. What about you?"

"No, I don't know anyone with that description either. Sorry we couldn't help you."

"I see. Thank you for your time." Sanji walked away. A few hours later, and several more people, he found that no one seem to know who the girl was. So he turned and headed back to the ship. Climbing aboard he found the rest of his crew had returned. "Well, I didn't have any luck. How about you all?"  
"Nope," Luffy said.

"We didn't find anyone who knows about her either," Nami said.

"I did find someone who said a ship sunk not far from here a few days ago," Zoro said. "She might have come from there."

"That's possible," Sanji said. "She does look like someone who washed up from a shipwreck."

"So you're all back," Franky said as he stepped out of the men's quarters.

"Did you get the cuffs off?" Sanji asked.

"Of course I did. It was super easy," Franky said. "And you were right. Those cuffs were specially designed to shock the person wearing them. She's still asleep the last time I checked. And Chopper was taking care of her wrists and ankles. He's still with her I think."

"Thanks. I'll go check in on her and Chopper in a minute," Sanji said.

"So I guess all we can do is wait until she wake up to find out anything about her," Nami said.

"Then that settles it!" Luffy grinned. "She's part of our crew!"

"Why must you always jump to that when we meet a new person?" Nami sighed.

"First things first," Sanji said. "We need to learn who she is. She should be able to tell us where she's from. If she wants to return home then we're going to help her. That is if she has a home to return to."

"Aw." Luffy's shoulders sagged.

"I'm going to go check on her now." Sanji headed for the stairs. "After that I'll get started on dinner."

"Yeah! I want meat!" Luffy cheered. "Lot's and lot's of meat!"

Sanji ignored him. With his hands in his pockets he slowly made his way to the back of the ship. He knocked on the infirmary door. When Chopper's muffled voice told him to come in he did. His eyes fell to the sleeping girl before looking at Chopper who was sitting at his desk. "How she's doing?"  
"Fine. She's sleeping comfortably," Chopper said, turning his chair to him. "I guess Franky told you about the cuffs."

"He did." Sanji closed the door behind him. He walked up to the bed and looked at the girl. Her wrists were now covered in white bandages. He knew her ankles were as well despite the blanket being over them. "Did anything happen while I was gone?"

"No. Nothing. Should something have happened?" Chopper asked.

"No," Sanji said. "I was just a bit nervous about leaving her behind with you."

"I was fine. She's been sleeping this whole time," Chopper said. "And I wasn't alone. Franky stayed with me. But I am a bit concerned about her shadow thing and what she did to you. Do you think we can really trust her?"

"I don't believe she'll attack us unless she's been provoked," Sanji said.

"She attacked you." Chopper's eyes went to Sanji's cheek.

"She was just scared," Sanji said. "She won't do it again."

"Well, okay. Anyway, I cleaned her up as much as I could," Chopper said. "But it was difficult to get her hair clean. There's a rather large knot in the middle of it. We might have to cut it out."

Sanji nodded. "We'll let her have a shower after she wakes up. If she can't get the knot out then we'll offer to cut it for her." He headed for the door. "I'm going to get dinner started."

"All right," Chopper said.

Sanji closed the door and headed back towards the front of the ship. He cast a look down at the deck, his crew was currently scattered around. Luffy was still going on about how he wanted this new girl to be part of his crew while the others were doing their best to ignore him. Shaking his head, Sanji stepped into the kitchen and closed the door behind him.

He turned on the water to the sink. His eyes locked onto the running water as his mind wondered back to the girl. He wondered if she was in a shipwreck. That could account for why she didn't weight a lot. Or if her lack of weight was from being abused. Her _owner_ could have deprived her of food.

He reached for the soap. Lathering up his hands he made a promise to make sure she was well fed no matter if she stayed on the ship or not. Shutting the water off he dried his hands then started pulling out foods that would help nourish the girl.


	2. Straw Hat Slave?

Straw Hat Slave?

She opened her eyes. In a slow blink she stared up at the wooden ceiling above her. With a low sigh she sat up. Looking around the room confusion began to grown inside of her. The bed she was sitting on was companied by a desk, a chair, a cabinet, and a bookshelf with several bottles scattered around the room. Nothing was familiar to her.

Light spread across the shadowed floor when the door. She turned to it. A small animal with a blue nose and horns walked in.

"Oh, you're awake," it said. "How are you feeling?"

She didn't reply. She only kept staring at it. It was another thing she hadn't seen before. And it was wearing a pair of pants and a hat. None of the animals she's seen before wore clothes. Nor did any of them speak.

"Uh…" The animal stared back at her as if it was confused. "Oh! Yeah, I'm Tony Tony Chopper. I've been taking care of you. I'm the doctor on this ship. You're on the Thousand Sunny."

"Ship," she murmured.

"That's right," he said. "You're on our ship. We're actually pirates, but you don't have to worry. We won't hurt you. It was one of our crew that brought you here."

"Brought me?" she said. "No. This isn't right. I should not be here." She looked to the door. The reindeer was standing between her and it. She wondered if she could get past him and get out of here.

"Shouldn't be here?" Chopper blinked.

"Hey," a muffled voice, accompanied with a knock on the door, said. "It's me. I'm coming in."

"Come on in, Sanji." Chopper turned to the door as it opened again.

"Hm? Oh, she's up." The man turned to look at her.

She looked up to the new person in the room. He was tall, blonde hair fell over his left eye. He held a plate of steaming food in his hand but what caught her attention the most was his eyebrow. Instead of arching over his eye it curled up and around like a swirl.

"Yeah. She just got up," Chopper said. "And she's insisting that she wants to leave."

"Is that so?" Sanji looked at the animal then back at her.

She cast her eyes down when he looked at her. Her eyes landed on her wrists. She lifted her hands, confused at the missing cuffs. A white cloth was now in their place. She jerked the blanket off her legs. The ones on her ankles were also replaced with the same cloth on her wrist. "I don't understand."

"What don't you understand?" Sanji asked.

"They're gone." She touched her wrists. "The cuffs are gone."

"Of course they're gone," Sanji said. "We had them removed. You're no longer going to wear them."

"No. That's not right." She shook her head, trembling. "It can't be like that. The master will be upset. They have to be there. Master will be angry."

…

Sanji stood and continued to stare at the girl. He huffed. His suspicious were now confirmed. She was someone's slave. And whoever her master was clearly brainwashed into thinking she wasn't her own person. He drew in a breath and slowly let it out. Then he stepped forward. The girl jerked at his closeness. He held out the plate for her. "Here you should eat this. I'm sure you're hungry."

She didn't take it.

"It's okay. Your master would want you to eat, right?" Sanji said.

"N-no," she stuttered. "I'm not suppose to take anything from anyone."

"I see." Sanji pulled back. He had to figure out some way of getting her to eat. But he couldn't think of anything right off. Her master had conditioned her well.

"What do we do now?" Chopper looked up at him. "She's not going to eat."

"I noticed," Sanji said. "Why don't you go tell the other's she awake?"

"You want me to leave?" Chopper asked.

"I want to talk to her alone for a while," Sanji said. "It might work better if it's just me in here."

"Oh. Okay then." Chopper opened the door. He gave the girl one more glance before leaving the room.

Sanji waited a minute before placing the plate down on the desk. He then sat down in Chopper's chair. "It's just us now. And you know that I'm not going to hurt you. So why don't we talk a little bit?"

She remained unresponsive.

"Can you tell me why you were being chased by those men before?" Sanji asked. He waited. Several minutes passed. As he watched her he could see she was thinking. Though he wasn't sure if she was thinking about his question or if she was thinking of a way to escape from him. Which led to another issue. How were they going to stop her from running away? He didn't want to hurt her. She had been hurt enough. But she had to understand that she was safe here. And that she wasn't going to go back to being a slave.

"They wanted me to go with them," she finally said.

"Go where?" Sanji asked when she didn't continue.

"To their house," she said.

"I see." Sanji frowned. "I assume you were alone. No one else was with you?"

"I was alone." She nodded.

Sanji sighed. "I see. Where you with someone before you ended up on the beach?"

"I was." She hugged her knees to her chest. "I was with Master."

"So you were a slave before?"

"I worked for my master," she said.

"And were is he now?" Sanji asked.

"I don't know," she said.

"Did something happen to him?"

"I don't know," she said again.

"Where were you before you were on this island?" Sanji asked.

"On my master's ship," she said.

Sanji huffed when she once again didn't continue. Frustration with her short answers started to bubble in his chest. He tapped his finger on his knee in thought. If she really was a slave then it was possible that she wasn't allowed to speak much. That could be why she wasn't saying much right now. Exhaling he released his frustration. Patience was needed right now. "All right, Princess, I want you to tell me what happened before you came to this island."

"I…I can't." Wrapping her arms around herself she trembled. "I…it's not allowed."

Sanji thought about her words for a moment before saying, "It's okay. You won't get in trouble for telling me. I want to help you get back to your master." He cringed at his own words. But the lie was necessary at the moment. "So tell me. If your master is nearby then we can take you to him. What's his name?"

Sanji watched as she considered his words. Finally she said, "My master was going on a business trip. His name is Eris Cain. Master was eating his dinner when the ship was attacked by pirates." She hesitated for a few seconds. "They…they wanted his money. During the battle a sea king attacked. The ships were broke apart. I got thrown overboard and had to swim to the island. Master told me before that if I ever got separated from him I was to sit still until he came and got me."

"How long were you sitting there alone out there?" Sanji asked.

"Four days," she said.

"Four days, huh?"

She nodded. "Master would be upset that I am not there. I have to go back."

"Well, if it's been four days since you've seen your…master it's most likely he drowned at sea," Sanji said.

"Then what do I do? Master said his family would take me if he ever died," she said. "But I don't know if they know what happened. They won't know where I am. I have to get back to them." She stood up and bolted for the door.

"No." Sanji jumped from the chair. He placed his hand on the door just as she opened it.

"Why are you stopping me? I have to go. It's Master's orders," she said. She pulled on the door but it didn't budge. "Open it. Please. I have to go. Master will be angry."

"I'm sorry, but I'm not going to let you go back to being a slave," Sanji said.

"But I…I must." She stumbled back away from the door. Her breathing came in fast short gasps. "M-Master orders it. I…can't…stay…"

"I don't care what he orders or ordered. People are not meant to be slaves," Sanji said. Heat flickered in his chest. It was painfully obvious that this young girl knew nothing other than being a slave. She must have been one since she was very young. Taking a puff of his cigarette he exhaled, calming himself. "Look, Princess, I know this might be hard for you to understand, but you are no longer a slave. I won't let you be."

"Master won't be pleased."

Sanji twitched when he noticed a slight shift in her tone. It was a bit darker than before. Then he remembered the thing with her shadow. His eyes dropped to the floor. Once again her shadows were shifting and lifting off the floor as if they were going to attack. His eyes lifted back to her. "Your shadow did that before when you were knocked out. Why?"

She flinched and cowards back from him, her shadows settling back to normal. She dropped to the floor. Her breath became even sharper and faster.

"Hey, take it easy. If you keep breathing like that you're going to pass out," Sanji said.

She didn't stop. "Ha- get back…in trouble…c-n't"

"Come on! Please stop that!" Sanji reached to grabbed her shoulders but paused. He stood to go get Chopper but stopped. He didn't need to leave her alone. Not in this state. "Man! What do I do?!"

Her eyelids fluttered closed. She slumped forward and passed out.

Sanji snapped out his hands, catching her before she could hit the floor. Picking her up she placed her back in bed. "This is just great. What do I do now? She clearly doesn't understand my point."

Sitting back down he went over what little he knew about her. She had some kind of power. She was a slave. She had been ordered to not talk much. She wanted to get back to her master's family. The only thing that came to mind with helping her was to pretend he was her new master until he could show her she can be her own person. He ran his hand through his hair with a frustrated grunt. "Man, I hate that idea. But it's better than things are now. I should let the others know about this."

Sanji picked up the plate and left the room. Reaching the deck he found the others there.

"So how did it go?" Usopp asked.

"She passed out," Sanji said. "But I did get some information from her. She told me her master's name is Eris Cain."

"Eris Cain?" Robin asked.

"You know him?" Nami asked.

"Only by name," Robin said. "He's a rich merchant who specializes in selling a lot of stuff but is most known for is treacle that's only found on his home island of Bittersweet."

"Bittersweet, huh? That's ironic," Sanji said. He slapped Luffy's hand away when the captain reached for the plate in his hand. "Leave that alone!"

"Ouch." Luffy pulled back. "She's not going to eat it."

"Yes, she is. I'm going to warm it up for her," Sanji said.

"Does that mean you have a plan?" Usopp asked.

"We've already decided she's going to stay with us, right?" Sanji asked. The crew nodded. "Well, I don't think it's the best solution in the world but it's the only one I can think of."

"Spit it out already," Zoro said.

"I've decided to tell her that I'm going to be her new master," Sanji said.

"What?!" Usopp, Chopper, and Luffy screamed.

"There's no other choice," Sanji said. "She's been conditioned to be a slave. It's apparently all she knows. And she tried to escape on me. This might be the only way to handle it."

"I hate to admit it," Zoro said, "but the idiot cook has a point."

"You don't mean that," Nami said.

"He's right," Brook said. "It's not like we know where Bittersweet is. We don't have an eternal pose for it. And it would only harm her more if we took her back to that situation."

"But we don't know anything about her," Nami said. "Like that shadow thing she did before."

"It's possible it is just a devil fruit," Usopp said.

"That can't be possible," Nami said. "There's only one type of each devil fruit. And Gekko Moriah has the shadow devil fruit."

"Maybe, but there are also variants of some devil fruits," Zoro said.

"She's not a devil fruit user," Sanji said.

"How do you know for sure?" Usopp asked.

"You idiots need to learn to listen better." Sanji pointed his cigarette at the sniper. "I told you she said her ship was attacked by pirates and a sea king. She was found on this island. She _swam_ to the island."

"Oh. Right," Usopp said.

"So she wasn't that far from the island to begin with," Nami said. "But I wonder why no one knew about her. She was sitting on the beach for four days."

"Maybe it was a part of the beach no one goes to often," Robin said. "And if no one else came to this island after being attacked and shipwrecked then it's possible they're all dead."

"So she has nowhere else to go," Nami said. "Well, besides her master's family."

"And that's not going to happen," Sanji said.

"Do you have any idea how difficult it's going to be to reprogram a person like her?" Zoro asked.

"Shut up!" Sanji snapped. "It might be hard but I'm not going to let her be a slave! It's just wrong!"

"I was just making sure you know what you're getting us into," Zoro said. "You're not the only one on this ship after all."

"Hold on," Usopp said. "We still don't know if her former master is alive or dead. What do we do if he is alive and comes back for her?"  
"The chances of that aren't very likely," Nami said. "I mean it's possible others from the ship are alive. They might have just got pulled in another direction. But the chances of running into them is going to be fairly slim at this point."

"So then it's settled," Sanji said looking at each and every one of his crewmates. "She's staying with us? And we're all going to do all we can to help her?"

"I've got nothing against it," Brook said.

"It's cool with me," Franky said.

Robin nodded.

"We'll need to get her some of her own clothes," Nami said. "Good thing we're still docked at this island."

"Uh, might want to rethink that," Usopp said.

"Why's that?" Sanji looked at the sniper. Usopp had his goggles over his eyes, looking out at the ocean.

"There's two navy ships coming this way," Usopp said.

"Crap." Zoro jumped to his feet. "Do they know we're here?"

"I say we don't find out," Usopp said.

"Then let's set sail!" Luffy screamed.

The rest of the crew jumped to their feet. Running around the ship they lowered the sails. Catching the wind the ship slipped away from the island.

"They're not following us," Usopp said looking through his goggles again. "That's good. We're safe."

"I'm going to go check on her again." Sanji headed for the stairs. "Oh, right. She'll will need a shower."

"We know," Nami said. "Chopper told us about her hair too. We'll help her when she's ready."

Sanji nodded then headed for the kitchen. After warming the meal he headed back to the infirmary. Just as she entered into the room she was starting to wake up. "I'm glad you're awake again."

She sat up.

"I want you to eat this." Sanji placed the plate on her lap.

She looked at it then looked away.

"I'm your new master now," Sanji said.

Her eyes shot to him. "New master?"

Sanji's eyebrows kneaded in confusion. Her eyes were no longer dark yellow or dark red. They were now dark grey.

"I don't understand. Did my master sell me to you?" Shadow asked.

"No," Sanji said. "As I said before I believe he's dead. We have no way of getting you to his home island. Unless you have an eternal pose. Do you have one?"

"I do not," she said.

"Then you are staying with me," Sanji said. "And as you new master I order you to eat that food."

The girl's trembling hands took a hold of the plate. She pulled it to her chest, picked up the spoon, and started eating.

Sanji stepped back away from her to give her space. He was relieved she was eating but flooded with guilty he had to order her around like that. While she continued to eat he sat down on Chopper's chair and waited patiently for her to finish. When she did he leaned forward. He was expecting her to tell her how good the meal was but he wasn't surprised at all when she didn't say anything about it.

"I am finished now. Thank you, Master," she did say.

Sanji flinched at being called master. Pushing it aside he stood up and he took the plate from her. He sat the plate on the desk before sitting back down. "So what's your name?"  
"Shadow," she said.

"Shadow? Have you always had that name?"

"Master…I mean my former master gave it to me," Shadow said.

"And I think it's safe to assume that he called you that because of your abilities over the shadows?"

"I don't know," she said. "I suppose so."

"All right. For now I'll call you Shadow," Sanji said. "But once I think of a better name for you I'm changing it."

"If it pleases you, Master," Shadow said with a bow of her head.

"I never thought I'd have to be called that again." Sanji rubbed the back of his head.

"Again, Master?" She looked up.

"It's nothing. Never mind," Sanji said. "I guess, if you're feeling up to it, I should introduce you to my crewmates now."

"If that's what you want, Master," Shadow said. "I am here to serve you."

"Great." Sanji stood up. More guilt swirled in his chest for having to deceive her. He reminded himself it was for the best. He grabbed the plate and headed for the door. "Let's go."

She stood up and followed him.

"By the way, two navy ships were coming. So we've set sail." Sanji looked back at her. Shadow looked up at him. Once again her eyes had changed. Now they were dark blue. "Shadow?"

"I understand, Master." She blinked.

"I should warn you that my crewmates can be rather loud and crazy at times. But they won't hurt you. They've agreed to keep you here," Sanji said.

"I understand. You all are my new masters." Shadow nodded. "I will obey you all."

Sanji sighed. "No, that's not exactly what I mean. You're not going to be owned anymore."

"What?" The blue of Shadow's eyes shifted back into a dark grey.

A light clicked on in Sanji's head. Shadow's eyes changed colors to fit her mood. And right now she was confused. And judging her reactions before dark yellow means she's scared while dark red probably meant she was angry. "What I mean is we're going to help you become your own person. That means you're going to be able to make your own choices. You won't be a slave anymore."

"I don't…I don't understand." Shadow's eyes fell to the floor.

"I know you don't," Sanji said. "But you will in time. Just trust me. No one's going to hurt you here." He leaned closer to her until she brought her eyes up to him. Placing his hand on his heart he added, "I promise. You're going to be safe here."

"As you say, Master," Shadow said.

"And first we're going to have to work on you calling us by our names," Sanji said. "For now let's get your hair taken care of. Nami and Robin are ready to assist you in your shower. Uh, you do know how to wash yourself, right?"

"I do, Master." Shadow nodded.

"Right. Let's go then." Rubbing his neck, Sanji walked back to the door.

Shadow followed him.

Heading back to the deck Sanji toss a glance back at her. She was following him with her hands collapsed in front of her and her head down. Reaching the stairs he placed the plate on the floor before leading her down them. "Shadow, these are my crewmates. This is our captain Luffy."

"Hi!" Luffy waved with a big grin.

"Nami our darling and lovely navigator."

"Nice to meet you." Nami smiled.

"Robin our beautiful archeologist."

Robin smiled and nodded.

"Franky is our shipwright."

"Ow! Super nice to meet you!" Franky struck a pose.

"Zoro our idiot swordsman who get's lost all the time."

"Shut up, you stupid cook! I do not always get lost!" Zoro growl.

Shadow flinched and took a step closer to Sanji.

"Don't worry about him. He's an idiot." Sanji patted her head. "Usopp is our sniper."

"Nice to meet you." Usopp waved.

"And Brook is our newest crewmate. He's a musician. He's a talking skeleton because of his devil fruit," Sanji said. "He's harmless."

"It is a pleasure to meet you." Brook took his hat off and bowed to her. "Might I see your panties?"

"You idiot!" Sanji slammed his foot onto the skeleton's head. "Don't ask her that! What's wrong with you?!"

"I'm sorry," Brook said, his boney body now lying flat on the floor. "I won't do it again."

"You better not," Sanji growled. He turned to Shadow. She was trembling. Her eyes were dark yellow again. "Anyway, you should get cleaned up now. I'm sure you'll feel better after that. Nami and Robin will help you."

…

Shadow looked at all of her master's crewmates when he motioned to them. She committed their names to memory only to jump when the one with green hair screamed. She dropped her eyes back to the deck until Sanji spoke to her about getting a shower. "Yes, Master. As you wish." Her eyes turned to the orange haired woman when she stood up from the small table she and the other woman were sitting at. "I am ready."

"I'll get you some clothes to wear." Nami went up a set of stairs opposite from the ones she followed Sanji down from.

Shadow followed her then glanced on upwards to the helm. She looked up to the mast then to the area they had come from.

"We'll make sure you know where everything is," Sanji said. He pointed to a door set in the stairs. "The bathroom's there if you need it. There's also another one next to the bathhouse. Robin and Nami will show you it."

"Yes, Master," Shadow said.

"Are there any injuries we need to watch for while she's bathing?" Robin placed her book on the table.

"No," Chopper said. "Just be careful with her open wounds. When she gets done with the shower I'll put some more medication on them and dry bandages."

"Got them. I think these will fit her just fine." Nami came back down to the deck with a bundle of clothes in her arms. She smiled at Shadow. "Shall we go now?"  
"As you wish, Mistress." Shadow nodded.

Nami hummed. "Well, that's a bit awkward."

"My apologize, Mistress." Shadow hung her head. "I didn't mean to displease you."

"I'm not displeased," Nami said. "I'm just…you don't have to call me that. You don't have to call anyone that. We're friends not your masters or mistresses."

Shadow lifted her eyes back to Nami. "Friends?"

"Hey! What happened to your eyes?!" The one called Luffy suddenly appeared in front of her face.

Shadow shifted. Twiddling her fingers she said, "I…I don't know. They just change like that, Master Luffy."

"Master?" Luffy blinked.

"I noticed that before," Sanji said. "They seem to change to fit her mood. Right now she's confused so her eyes are dark grey. Anger seems to be dark red. Scared is dark yellow."

"My apologies." Shadow bowed her head to them. "I do not know why my eyes do that. It's not my intention to offend or frighten anyone."

"Fright? We're not frighten or offended," Luffy said. "Your eyes are so cool! I wish mine did that!"

"I don't understand." Shadow looked over to Sanji upon remembering him speaking to her in the infirmary.

"We're not going to judge you or make fun of you for your eyes," Sanji said.

"If you say so, Master," Shadow said. "I will obey."

"Oh man," Zoro said. "She really is brainwashed."

"Brainwashed, Master Zoro?" Shadow turned to the green haired man. "What do you mean?"

"I mean you have a one track mind," Zoro said.

"I still do not understand," Shadow said. More confusion swirled inside of her head.

"Never mind that for now," Sanji said. "It can be hard to explain. We'll work on it later. Just get your shower done."

"Yes, Master." Shadow nodded to him then turned to face the women. "I am ready, Mistresses. Please, if you would, show me where the washroom is?"

"Just follow us," Nami said.

Shadow took a step back to allow the two women to pass by her. Once they did she followed behind them with her hands folded in front of her. She held her head up just high enough to keep an eye on where they were heading. They headed back towards the infirmary but instead of going there they cut up and ended up in a round room with several books in it. She watched as the women climbed up the ladder in the room before following them. The ladder led them to the small bathroom that Sanji told her about.

"It's in here." Nami opened a door.

Shadow followed them in. The room was simple. A large square tub was on the opposite wall. A showerhead was mounted on the wall to her left and a storage closet and a vanity was on her right.

"I'll just put your clothes right here." Nami placed them down on the vanity then stepped over to the closet. She opened it up and pulled out a towel and a washrag. "Feel free to use any of our shampoos and body soap."

"Thank you, Mistress Nami." Shadow took the towel and washrag from the women.

"Do you need any help?" Robin asked.

"No, Mistress Robin. I can do it." Shadow hugged the towel and washrag to her chest.

"We'll just step outside then," Nami said. "Call if you need anything."

"Yes, Mistress Nami." Shadow nodded. Then the women were gone. With a sigh she looked around the room again before disrobing. Placing her towel down on the vanity she stepped over to the shower. Eyeing the knobs she determined it was simple enough to use. The knobs squeaked as she turned them on. Cold water ran over her fingers before it turned hot. At her desired temperature she stepped under the falling liquid. She was fast. When her hair was soaked she grabbed the closest shampoo and lathered her hair. A soft lavender smell came from the shampoo but she didn't stop to enjoy the smell. She rinsed it out then moved on to washing her body. Within six minutes she had her shower done and was dressed. She paused only for a moment to inspect herself in the mirror. Her mistress had given her a white shirt with a flower on the front and a short light brown skirt. She quickly left the bathroom. Opening the door she found her two mistresses talking in the small bathroom they passed through.

"You done already?" Nami said. "That was fast."

"I'm sorry." Shadow bowed to them. "I did not mean to take so long, Mistresses."

Nami and Robin exchanged looks.

"It's all right, Shadow," Robin said. "You could have taken as long as you wish."

"Yes, Mistress. I did not know where to put my clothes," Shadow said. "I left them on the floor. What should I do with them?"  
"Just leave them," Nami said. "You won't be wearing those things again. They're too dirty."

"Yes, Mistress Nami. I'm sorry, Mistress Nami." Shadow's heart raced. She clasped her trembling hands in front of her. "I will wear whatever you wish."

"Wow. You are a new experience, Shadow," Nami said. "How's your hair? It looks like it's still tangled."

"Yes, Mistress Nami. The knot would not come out when I washed it." Shadow touched her hair.

"Well, I'll take care of that. Let's get back to the deck," Nami said.

"If you wish it, Mistress Nami." Shadow nodded. Silently, she followed them back to the deck.

"Sit down. I'll get my hairbrush and we'll see what we can do about that knot." Nami waved to one of the chairs at the table.

"Yes, Mistress Nami." Shadow sat down instantly.

"Man, you're not going to be much fun if you always do what we say," Luffy said.

"Apologies, Master Luffy." Shadow bowed her head.

"I'm not Master Luffy. I'm just Luffy," Luffy said.

"Give her a break, Luffy," Usopp said. "She's not had the lives we had."

"But she's a pirate now," Luffy said. "She should do as she wants."

"She will in time," Sanji said. "We're just going to have to be patient with her."

Shadow looked over at the blonde. She wanted to go stand with him, but stayed where she was. Before long Nami came back with a hairbrush in hand. She held up her hand for the brush but Nami stepped behind her.

"Let me take care of your hair," Nami said. "I can see it better than you can."

"Yes, Mistress Nami." Shadow lowered her hand back to her lap and sat quietly as she was ordered to.

…

Sanji exhaled a puff of smoke. His eyes remained locked on Shadow when she reappeared with Nami and Robin. When the young woman was seated he slipped beside Robin. "How was she?"  
"Mostly confused," Robin said before giving him a detailed description of what happened.

"I see." Sanji nodded. He watched as Nami returned and started working on the knot in Shadow's hair. Chopper soon joined the two women to reapply the medication to her wounds while she was sitting there.

"Well," Nami then said. "I have no idea what happened to your hair, but this knot is being very stubborn. I think it might be best to just cut it out of your hair."

"If you see it as best," Shadow said.

Sanji sighed. Getting her to be her own person wasn't going to be an easy task at all. He caught Nami's eyes when she looked at him. "Go ahead. You know more about long hair than I do."

Nami nodded before pulling a pair of scissors from her pocket.

Sanji's eyes fell back to Shadow. Her eyes were still yellow with confusion as her hair fell to the deck. It didn't take long for Nami to but the knot out. Shadow's hair was now just below her shoulders.

...

 **Posting will happen when it happens. I might get two chapters up a week or it might be one.**


	3. Abilities

Abilities

Shadow sat quietly for the rest of the evening. She watched her new masters and mistresses as they went about what she assumed were their normal routines onboard the ship. The one called Luffy had fallen asleep on the grass while the one called Zoro had remained against the wall where he had been when she was first brought here. He too was asleep. The ones called Franky and Usopp played a game she often saw her former master play, chess. The skeleton, Brook, pulled out a violin and started to play it. The only two mistresses she had stayed sitting at the small table with her. Both had a book in their hands.

"Would you like a book to read, Shadow?" Nami asked.

Shadow ducked her head. "No, Mistress Nami. I do not know how to read."

"Oh. I'm sorry," Nami said. "We can teach you."

"That's not necessary, Mistress," Shadow said. "I do not need to know how to read to do my job."

"That's nonsense," Nami said. "Everyone should know how to read."

"Your former master decided this, didn't he?" Robin asked.

"Yes, Mistress Robin." Shadow nodded. "He said I only needed to do as he said."

"Well, that a bunch of crap." Nami slammed her hand down on the table.

Shadow jumped. Closing her eyes tight she trembled and waited for her punishment. "I am sorry, Mistress Nami. I…I did not mean to upset you."

"What? You didn't upset me," Nami said. "That creep of a master you had upset me."

"What's going on?" Sanji asked.

Shadow peaked up at him. He had been in the kitchen for a while now. She realized what the reason was when she noticed a tray in his hand. He was making something to eat for his crewmates.

"Sorry. I got a little loud. I think I scared Shadow," Nami said. "Her eyes are yellow again."

"I see." Sanji walked down the stairs. "You don't have to be scared, Shadow. You did nothing wrong." He picked a glass up off the tray and sat it in front of her. "Here's a snack for you."

"A snack?" Shadow stared at the glass before her.

"It's a parfait," Sanji said while handing the rest of them out. "Give it a try. If you don't like it it's fine. People have different tastes."

Shadow picked up the spoon. Scooping a small spoonful she slipped the cream into her mouth. It was smooth and cool, the flavor tangy and fresh.

"So what do you think? Isn't Sanji the best cook ever?" Luffy asked.

"If you say so, Master Luffy," Shadow said.

"Not that again." Luffy pouted. "When will she stop calling me master?"

"Have some patients, Luffy." Brook glanced over at them while he continued his song. "She's been like for a long time, probably all her life. She's not going to change over night."

Shadow continued eating. She tried to understand what her new masters and mistresses were saying but she couldn't. What they were saying about her didn't make sense. She was their slave. She was supposed to wait on them. It was her duty. Upon finishing her snack she let her eyes drift to the horizon. She watched it as the sun lowered, painting oranges, yellows, and reds over the sky. The warm air gave way to the cooler night air.

"Well, I guess it's time to go to bed." Nami stood and stretched out her body.

Robin closed her book and stood up.

"I'll walk with you ladies. Come on, Shadow. I'll show you to the room you'll be staying in," Sanji said.

"Yes, Master." Serena stood up. She followed him and the women when they headed up the stairs.

Nami opened a door and they entered.

"This is where you'll be sleeping," Sanji said once they were all inside the room.

Shadow looked around the room. A soft pleasant smell lingered in the air. It wafted into her nose as she looked around. A large bed was on the far wall. A table and two chairs were on her right as well as a closet.

"And here's you a pillow and a blanket." Nami handed her the items.

Shadow took them. She walked over to the foot of the bed. She spread the blanket out before placing her pillow down on it. Then she sat down with her hands in her lap.

The three pirates exchanged looks.

"Well, let's just let her sleep where she wants for now," Sanji said.

The women nodded.

"She needs to brush her teeth," Robin said. "Do we have a spare toothbrush for her?"

"I think so. We keep the extras in the bathroom," Nami said.

"I'll go check. Shadow, come with me," Sanji said.

"Wait." Nami rushed to the closet before walking over to Shadow. She handed the girl a set of pajamas. "You can wear these tonight."

"Thank you, Mistress Nami." Shadow took them from her then followed Sanji back outside. As he stepped into the small room under the stairs she waited outside. A cold wind brushed against her skin. She shivered.

"Here you go. I found one." Sanji poked his head out of the room with the toothbrush in hand. "You can use my toothpaste. You're shivering. Are you cold?"

"I'm fine, Master," Shadow said.

"Well, you can come in. I'll show you which is my toothpaste." Sanji went back in.

Shadow followed him.

"This is it." Sanji waved a tube of toothpaste in the air.

"Thank you, Master." She took the items from him before he left the room. Unscrewing the cap she pushed some of the toothpaste on her toothbrush. Running the bristles over her teeth she stared at herself in the mirror. She spat, rinsed her mouth, chanced her clothes, and then used the toilet before leaving. Stepping back outside she found Sanji was leaning against the wall waiting for her. "Did you need something, Master?"

"No." Sanji pushed off the wall. "I just wanted to make sure you had everything you needed."

"I do. Thank you, Master." Shadow nodded.

"Then I'll walk you back to your room," Sanji said. "But before that I want to show you my room."

Shadow nodded and followed him.

Sanji stepped to the next door and opened it.

She followed him inside. Unlike the women's room the men's had a musty, unwashed smell to it. Her nose twitched.

"This is the men's quarters," Sanji said. "If you need me at any point during the night you can come here and get me. Some nights, like tonight, I'll be on guard duty so I'll be out on the deck."

Shadow nodded. "Understood, Master."

"Nami and Robin will be more than glad to help you too." Sanji left the room. "So you can ask them as well."

"Yes, Master." Shadow followed him back up to the women's quarters.

"Get some rest now," Sanji said.

Shadow nodded. When he opened the door for her she stepped inside.

"Just drop your clothes in the hamper there," Nami said pointing to the hamper in the corner of the room. "We'll do laundry in a few days."

Shadow did as she was told then went to her bed. Laying down she pulled the covers tightly around her body. Her eyes remained locked on the wall in front of her.

"I really don't like this," Nami whispered. "She shouldn't be sleeping on the floor like that."

"I understand your concern. Things will get better soon. We just have to be patient with her," Robin said.

"I know." The light went out.

Shadow shifted. The bed beside her shifted with the weight of the two women then fell into silence. She looked around her surroundings. The portholes in the room allowed for a little moonlight to fall into the room. Scared and confused she wondered how things were going to go from now on. She had so many masters and mistresses she didn't know if she would be able to please them all well enough. With a sigh she closed her eyes. So much had happened to her in a few short days. She knew after some rest she would feel better and therefore would be able to preform her duties well enough to please her new masters and mistresses.

 _Shadow opened her eyes to a dark grey void. "No. Not again. Please don't do this."_

 _Black smoke appeared. It circled around her._

 _"Please. I don't want to do this any more," Shadow begged._

 _The smoke didn't listen. It continued to circle around her before gathering into a large clump that resembled a wolf. Red eyes lit up. "It's time."_

 _Shadow's head throbbed. She whimpered and dropped to her knees._

 _"Don't worry, my pet." The smoke slid over her._

 _Shadow grabbed her head. "No…"_

 _The smoke completely engulfed her._

Shadow opened her now glowing red eyes. Pushing the blanket away from her she stood up. Her eyes landed on the two sleeping women. She stepped up to the side of the bed. Reaching out shadows extended over her skin and her fingers like long fingernails. They scrapped along Robin and Nami's vulnerable necks.

A thump from outside drew her attention. She turned to it. The door came into view. She walked over to it and left the room. Her eyes drew right to him. He was sitting on the railing of the ship, unaware of her presence there. She walked down the stairs and right to him. He was strong. She could sense it. Lifting her sharp claws, she prepared herself to strike at him.

…

Sanji pulled his cigarette from his lips and exhale. Smoke flowed out between his lips before swirling up around his nose. His eyes continued to scan for any sighs of a ship that might be attempting to be sneaking up on them but his mind was constantly on Shadow. An odd feeling had settled into his body ever since he separated from her when she went to bed. Something told him that he shouldn't be away from her. But he had no idea what it was or why he would feel like this. He didn't know her after all. Or he didn't know much about her. They managed to figure out a few things about her but they knew nothing about her abilities. "Maybe I'm just over thinking things. I doubt she'll hurt us. She's too submissive for that. But then again she might not have control over her abilities. She could hurt us without wanting to or realizing it."

A wind blew off the water. The ship creaked. The hairs on his arms stood up feeling a dark presence behind him. He turned. His eyes widened at the red glowing eyes staring at him. The shadows had returned. They covered her body like they did back on the island. His heart thumped. She looked like she wanted to kill him. No. It wasn't _her_. It was whatever had taken over her. Slowly he slid to his feet. "Hey there, Shadow. Do you need something?"

Shadow hunched her shoulders. A feral air gathered around her. She bared her now longer teeth and growled.

"Take it easy, Shadow. It's okay. It's me. Sanji. I brought you to this ship," Sanji said. "Do you remember?"

A split second of recognition appeared on her face before she lunged at him.

Sanji jumped to his left before she could sink her teeth into his body. He gasped when she followed after him as if she knew how he was going to move. "Shadow! Stop!"

She growl. Lifting her hand she swiped her claws at him.

Sanji gritted his teeth when her claws shredded his jacket. "That was way too close!"

"Hey. What's going on down there?" Usopp came running over to the deck. "I'm back there trying to keep and eye out for-Ah! What the heck?! What is that thing?!"

"It's not a thing!" Sanji dodged another swipe of Shadow's claws. "It's Shadow!"

"What?! How can that thing be Shadow?!" Usopp asked.

"I don't know!" Sanji's back hit the railing. He dodged to his right.

Shadow's claws hit the railing, splintering it.

"Should I hit her?!" Usopp raised his Kabuto.

Shadow's eyes shot up to him.

"Ah! She's going to attack me!" Tears poured over his eyelids. "What do I do?!"

"Don't shoot her!" Sanji said just as Shadow launched herself up to the sniper.

"What?! She's going to eat me!" Usopp screamed.

Sanji gritted his teeth. He had to stop her. But he wasn't going to hurt her. He couldn't. He wouldn't hit her.

"Sanji!" Usopp shrieked. "Do something!"

Shadow flew towards him.

Sanji kicked off the floor. Launching himself through the air he grabbed her before she could sink her teeth or claws into Usopp's body. Wrapping his arms around her he held her tight to his chest. She struggled in his hold as he landed. Her teeth gnashed at his arm, but he held her low enough she couldn't bite him.

"What's wrong with her?" Usopp asked.

"I don't know. But this is basically what she did back on the island," Sanji said.

"She looks like some kind of animal," Usopp said.

Shadow kicked out her foot.

Usopp jerked back, barely missing getting hit.

"Calm down, Shadow. You're okay," Sanji said moving his arm closer to her shoulders without thinking.

Shadow opened her mouth and sunk her teeth into his arm.

Sanji winced but held tight to her.

"She just bit you!" Usopp bolted for the stairs. "I'll get Luffy! We need his help!"

"No. Don't," Sanji said.

"Why not?" Usopp paused.

"Having more people here will only make things worse," Sanji said. "Just go back to your post. I'll take care of her."

"Are you insane?" Usopp asked.

"Just go. It'll be all right," Sanji said.

Usopp looked at Shadow then back at Sanji. He nodded the headed back to the stern.

Sanji sighed. Backing up to the wall he slide down it, keeping Shadow firmly in his arms. "It's okay, Shadow. No one's going to hurt you. You're safe here."

Shadow continued to struggle against him. But with each word he spoke she calmed down.

"That's it. Good girl." Sanji kept his voice low and soothing. Her body finally relaxed in his hold. The shadows on her body started to recede back to where they belonged. Once it was completely gone she went limp in his arms. He continued to hold her there. Several minutes passed before she finally stirred.

When she noticed where she was she gasped and pulled away from his arms. Sinking away from him she tucked up against the banister. Body trembling she said, "I-I'm sorry, Master. I'm sorry. I didn't mean to do it. F-forgive me."

Sanji sighed. Her fear was obvious. This must have been why she had those shock cuffs on her body. He could only assume her former master shocked her to get her back under control when _this_ happened. "It's okay, Shadow. You did nothing wrong." He reached for her. Placing his hand on her head, she twitched and curled tighter into herself. Her breathing became labored. "Just relax. I'm not going to hurt you."

Her breathing became shorter and faster.

"Come down now. You're hyperventilating," Sanji said. She didn't hear him and passed out. He grabbed her, pulling her against his chest. His eyes wandered over her facial features. She was relaxed now. She was at peace. But it wasn't going to last long. She would most likely be scared once she woke up again. His eyes drew over to the women's bedroom. He probably should put her back in there but couldn't bring himself to do so. So he picked her up and carried her to the infirmary. Placing her on the bed he attended to his wound before carrying her back outside with him. He laid her down on the floor before stepping into the men's quarters to get his pillow and blanket. Slipping the pillow under her head he wrapped the blanket around her then sat back on the railing to watch over her and the night.

…

Sanji turned his attention to the women's quarters when he heard the door open.

Nami stepped outside and rushed down the stairs. "Sanji, she's missing. I can't find-" Her eyes fell to the sleeping girl on the deck. She sighed. "So that's where she's been. I woke up to get ready for my shift and found she wasn't in the room."

"Yeah. She came out here a few hours ago," Sanji said.

"Did something happen? You look upset." Nami walked over to him.

"She changed again. She attacked both me and Usopp," Sanji said.

"Are you two hurt?" Nami looked him over.

"We're fine. She did bite me on the arm but it's nothing serious so don't worry. And don't blame her for this either," Sanji said.

"Why not? If she's dangerous-"

"She's not dangerous." Sanji gave the navigator a stern look. "I'm not sure but whatever happened she's not able to control it. It was like she wasn't even there."

"So what are we going to do?" Nami asked. "How can we sleep if she might attack us? She was in the room last night with Robin and myself. We didn't even notice her leaving the room."

"I have an idea that might work," Sanji said. "I'll have to discuss it with the whole crew but…"

"What is it?" Nami probed.

"She'll sleep with me from now on," Sanji said.

"What?! You can't do that!" Nami's voice rose.

Shadow whimpered at the noise and pulled the blanket tighter around her.

"I'm a light sleeper so if she wakes up in the middle of the night I'll know it," Sanji said. "You and Robin didn't even notice she got up, remember?"

"That's true. But where could you two possibly sleep?" Nami glared at him. "Or do you have other intentions in mind?"

"Don't even think like that!" Sanji snapped. "This girl needs help!"

"Okay, okay." Nami lifted her hands in surrender. "I know you're not like that."

"Anyway, I was thinking we could sleep in the aquarium bar," Sanji said.

"That's probably the best place. We don't really use it all that often anyway," Nami said thoughtfully. "I'm sure that Franky could modify the room and put a couple beds in there."

"We could sleep on the couch. It's comfortable enough," Sanji said.

"That's true." Nami nodded.

"I'll talk it over with the rest of the crew at breakfast," Sanji said. "But I want to talk to her about it first."

"What are you going to do with her now?" Nami asked.

"Since we still have a few hours before breakfast I'll take her to the aquarium room now," Sanji said. "When she get's up I'll talk to her then."

"All right. Be careful, Sanji," Nami said.

Sanji nodded. Slipping off the railing he picked Shadow up and headed inside of the ship. The cool night air vanished upon entering the room. The fish inside of the tank paused to take notice of them before swimming off. He laid her down on the couch, made sure she was still tucked in and then laid down himself. With a sigh he closed his eyes and allowed himself to fall asleep while thinking of how he was going to address this issue when they woke up later.

…

Sanji stretched out his body while yawning. Opening his eyes he stared up at the ceiling of the aquarium room in confusion before remembering why he was there. Sitting up he found Shadow was already awake. She was sitting on the couch like a little soldier, like someone had ordered her to sit that way: Hands folded on her lap and staring down at the floor. Tears were gathered at the corner of her eyes. He figured she remembered what happened last night. "Shadow?"

She flinched and closed her eyes.

He reached out with the attempt to stroke her hair but she pulled away from him the second his hand touched her. He pulled back. "It's okay, Shadow. You did nothing wrong. I'm not angry at you."

She looked at him, her eyes flashing with confusion before dropping her eyes back down to the floor.

"Do you know what happened to you last night?"

She didn't move or reply.

"Okay. We don't have to talk about it right now. Just know that I'm not upset with you. You're not going to be punished for that." He paused before continuing. "There is something else I'd like to talk to you about. I think it would be best if we shared a room."

Shadow glanced at him quickly. "As punishment?"

"It's not a punishment of any kind. I only want to make sure that you're safe. If you wake up like that again I want to be there to be able to help you come back to your normal self. Do you understand?"

"I…I think so, Master," she whispered.

"It's okay if you don't. This is new for all of us. It's going to take time to adjust," Sanji said. "I have to talk to the crew about this but I'm thinking we can move into this room. Would you like that?" He expected her to look around the room but she didn't. "Well, it's about time to get breakfast ready. How about you come help me with it? Would you like that?"  
Shadow stood. "Yes, Master. I'll do as you wish."

"You don't have to do it if you don't want to," Sanji said.

"I'm ready, Master." She bowed her head.

Sanji sighed. He stood up and led her out of the room. Reaching the deck he allowed her to use the bathroom first. He waited for her as he did the night before.

"So how did it go?" Nami asked.

"As I expected. She still doesn't understand she's a free person now. It'll be fine though." Sanji looked up at the brightening sky tinted with oranges and yellows from the rising sun.

"What about the other thing? Did she tell you anything about it?" Nami asked.

"I honestly don't think she knows anything about it," Sanji said. "She was expecting to be punished for what she did. So whatever it is it's something her former master didn't want her to use."

"I know this will sound bad but I kind of wish that guy was here," Nami said.

"Why?"

"We could at least get some answers from him," Nami said.

"Yeah. After I beat the crap out of him," Sanji said. Shadow stepped back outside. He went in and got out as soon as he could. Shadow was standing there waiting for him.

"Sanji makes the best breakfasts ever. You're going to love it," Nami said though Shadow didn't seem to be paying attention to her.

"Let's go, Shadow." Sanji headed up the stairs.

"Yes, Master." Shadow followed him.

"So do you know how to cook?" Sanji asked as they stepped into the kitchen.

"No, Master. I was not allowed to do that," Shadow said.

"I see. That's okay. I can teach you how to do that." Sanji pulled out a couple griddles and placed them on the stove. Stepping over to the fridge he wondered if it was possible if her former master didn't allow her to cook because he didn't want to take the chance of her poisoning him. Sure it was a long shot since Shadow did have much of an education but the possibility was still there. Or maybe the man just didn't want Shadow to be out of his sight. The man clearly had controlling issues with her. "I think we're going to make pancakes today."

"Yes, Master." Shadow nodded.

Sanji placed all the ingredients on the counter. "First thing is you should always wash your hands before preparing food. But since we already did that we can skip it this time. Now that I have all the ingredients gathered we can start. We take a mixing bowl and add the ingredients into it." He started placing the ingredients into the bowl while telling her what they were. "I've been cooking for years so I don't use cookbooks. I have tons of recipes memorized. First we sift the flour, baking powder, salt, and sugar into the bowl." He glanced over at her to see if she was watching him. She was but with timid glances. He smiled knowing that she was at least a bit interested in what he was doing so he continued to explain to her everything he was doing. "And now we pour the batter onto the griddle like this."

The batter sizzled as it hit the hot griddle. Sanji glanced at her again. She was still taking timid glances at him. Smiling he went back to the pancakes while placing sausages on another pan. The raw meat sizzled and snapped, filling the room with a delicious greasy smell.

"Hey, Shadow, will you hand me that plate right there?" Sanji pointed to the plate on the counter.

"Yes, Master." Shadow reached for the plate. Pulling it from the counter it tapped against a glass cup. The cup tipped over. Her eyes widened. She reached for it but it rolled off the counter. The glass shattered upon hitting the floor. Her knees buckled. The plate felt from her hand as she collapsed to the floor. She gasped for air. "I-I'm sorry, M-Master. I-I didn't mean to do it."

"Hey, it's okay," Sanji said. "I shouldn't have placed that glass there." Seeing that his words weren't reaching her he shut off the stove and stepped over to her. He grabbed her shoulders. "Calm down, Shadow. You did nothing wrong." His eyes fell to her shadow. It was moving again. He gritted his teeth. Her transforming was the last thing he needed right now. The crew was up by now and out on the deck. He had to calm her down and quick. Only one thing came to mind. And why that particular thought came to him he didn't know. All he knew was he was leaning in towards her. His lips pressed against her forehead. Her body jerked. Her breathing went back to normal. He pulled back to find her frozen in shock at his kiss. "Well, at least you're calm now."

"What did…?" Her fingers reached up to her forehead. "Master…that was…I don't understand."

"I'm not sure I understand why I did that myself, but I'm glad you've calmed down," Sanji said.

Shadow nodded.

"Listen to me now. It was my fault. I placed that glass there and should have," Sanji said. "And it's no deal that it broke. I've broken plenty. And we still have glasses on the ship. Do you understand?"

She nodded.

"That's my girl." Sanji stroke her hair. He found it surprisingly soft.

"Why are you doing that, Master?"

Sanji paused to find her staring at him. He then realized he was still stroking her hair. He jerked his hand back. "Sorry about that. Let's continue with breakfast."

"Yes, Master." Shadow stood up with him.

Sanji turned back to the stove. Turning the fire back on he continued to cook their breakfast, his mind wander over the past few minutes. He was glad his actions calmed her down but he found they were a bit odd for him. He shoved it aside. At least it work now and would hopefully work in the future. "Hey, Shadow, would you like to set the table for me?"  
"If that is what you wish," Shadow said.

"The plates are in that cabinet up there and the silverware in that drawer there." Sanji nodded to each one.

Shadow pulled out the necessary dishes and sat them on the table.

Sanji then laid the food out on the table before calling the crew inside. He sat down himself and patted the seat beside him. "Sit with me."

"Yes, Master." Shadow sat down.

Sanji filled her plate and glass for her. While everyone ate he informed them of what happened last night and of his plan of sharing a room with her. "Do you think you can do it?"  
"No problem. It'll be easy," Franky said. "But would you like two beds? I can do that."

"I think one will do," Sanji said.

"One bed?" Usopp asked. He gave Sanji a suspicious look. "Do you have hidden motives?"  
"Shut up," Sanji said, keeping his voice low so he didn't intimidate Shadow. "If we're sharing the same bed then I'll feel her move. We'll be using different blankets."

"Sounds good to me," Luffy said. "If anyone can keep her calm it'll be Sanji. But I want to see what she did last night."

"Shut up, Luffy," Sanji said. "She's not going to do anything like that for you."

"Aw." Luffy slumped in his chair. "But I want to see." He looked at Shadow. "Come on, Shadow. Show me your powers."

"If that is what you wish, Master," Shadow said.

Sanji opened his mouth to tell her to stop but paused when her shadow lifted to the table. A small part of it separated from the rest. It placed itself on the table before shifting into a small squirrel.

"What the heck?!" Usopp asked.

"It's amazing! How is she doing that?" Chopper added. Placing his hooves on the table he stood up in his chair to look closer at the shadow squirrel.

"I've never seen such a thing," Brook said. "Not even with Moriah."

"Did her shadow just separated itself into two pieces?" Robin asked.

"That can't be possible," Nami said.

"Shadow, can you create anything out of your shadows?" Sanji asked.

Shadow gulped then nodded. "I…I think so, Master."

"That's so cool!" Luffy's eyes sparkled. "I want to see more! Do something else!"

"Knock it off, Luffy. Let her finish breakfast before you harass her," Sanji said. "Go on, Shadow. Finish eating."

"Yes, Master." Shadow picked up her fork and resumed eating.


	4. New Life, New Name

New Life, New Name

"Come on! Do something else!" Luffy cheered.

"Knock it off, you idiot!" Sanji growled between his gritted teeth. "She's not your play thing!"

"I don't mind, Master, if this is what Master Luffy wishes of me," Shadow said.

"Don't do that." Sanji turned and smiled at her. "Luffy's just being an idiot. You don't have to do what he says."

"But I want to see what else she can do with her powers." Luffy laid across the table. His bottom lip pooched out in a pout. "And call me Luffy. I'm your friend not your master."

"My apologizes, Master Luffy," Shadow said.

"Luffy!" Luffy said again.

Shadow ducked her head.

"Don't push it, Luffy. She'll learn that in time," Sanji said.

"Well, one things for sure," Zoro said. "We need to learn more about her powers or whatever they are before anything else. We don't want to be caught off guard with something else like she did before. I mean if someone else was on guard besides the perverted cook then who knows what would have happened to her or to us?"

"What did you call me?!" Sanji demanded.

"Perverted cook." Zoro grinned.

Shadow trembled, sinking more into herself.

"Enough. No fighting right now," Nami said. "You both are making Shadow nervous."

Everyone's eyes turned to the young woman. Shadow's eyes locked onto her lap. She sensed everyone looking at her but didn't look up.

"Sorry," Zoro said.

"Me too, Shadow," Sanji said. Reaching over he stroked her hair. The movement calmed her down. She glanced up timidly at him. He smiled at her.

"Would you please show us what you can do, Shadow?" Robin asked. "It would really be helpful to us."

"If…if that is what you wish," Shadow said.

"Then let's go!" Luffy cheered. Jumping up from the table he ran for the door.

"Hold on, Luffy," Sanji said. "She can show you that after I clean up here."

"Aw. Why?" Luffy turned back to the cook.

"If she gets scared again I need to calm her down," Sanji said.

"One of us can do that," Luffy said.

"Wake up and pay attention, Luffy," Nami said. "It's obvious that Shadow trusts Sanji more than the rest of us."

"Huh? But why?" Luffy glanced back and forth between the two. "She's been with all of us."

"I wondered that too," Chopper said. "Why is it she's more tuned into to Sanji?"

"True. But Sanji is the one who brought her on the ship. And he's the one who's been spending the most time with her so far," Nami said.

"And there is the fact that Sanji is quite a bit calmer than the rest of us," Brook said.

"He's got a point," Franky said. "We all saw how he calmed her down by rubbing her head. Maybe he just has the magical touch with her."

"Either way she's not going to do it without me," Sanji said. "So get use to it and wait."

"Fine," Luffy said. "But hurry up."

"Then get out of my kitchen." Sanji started gathering the plates from the table. "I can clean up faster without you in here."

"Okay!" Luffy grabbed the door handle and left the room.

One by one the rest of the crew got up from the table and followed their captain out to the deck.

"Why don't you stay in here with me?" Sanji turned to Shadow. "That way Luffy won't get the chance to bug you."

"Yes, Master." Shadow nodded. "I'll do as you wish. What would you like me to do?"  
"You just sit there." Sanji picked up the last plate from the table.

"You want me to sit here?" Shadow asked.

"Yes. That's what I want you to do." Sanji smiled.

"I don't understand, Master," Shadow said.

"I know. But that's okay. You will in time." Sanji walked over to the sink. He could feel the confusion radiating from her as he washed the dishes. Placing the last plate in the cabinet he turned to her. Much to his surprise she was watching him with curiosity. "Well, let's go."

"Yes, Master." Shadow stood up and followed him out to the deck. She glanced down to find the Straw Hats were scattered around.

"About time!" Luffy sat up from the deck. "Show us, Shadow!"

Shadow looked up at Sanji.

"It's okay." Sanji nodded. "Just show us what all your former master had you do."

"Yes, Master." Shadow looked down at the deck. Her shadow shifted from the wood. The shadow shifted into multiple spikes before separated into multiple squirrels like before. The squirrels flicked their tails and looked around.

"Fascinating. So you can do more than one at a time," Robin said.

"And they're colored like real squirrels," Usopp said. "Well, they look a little darker."

"How is that possible?" Chopper's nose twitched. "They don't smell like squirrels at all. In fact I don't smell anything from them. I only got Shadow's scent."

"They don't smell like squirrels because they're not squirrels. They probably only smell like Shadow because she created them from her shadow." Robin knelt down to the squirrels for a closer look. "Not all shadows are black. When lights of different colors shine on the same spot of a white surface, the light reflecting from that spot to your eyes is called an additive mixture because it is the sum of all the light. You can about human color perception by using colored lights to make additive color mixtures. If this is some sort of power she might have control over the color of her creations."

"Sounds complicated." Usopp crossed his arms.

"They're cute but what do they do?" Nami asked.

Shadow looked up at Sanji, seeking permission to speak.

"It's okay, Shadow." Sanji nodded. "Tell us."

Shadow swallowed. "My former master had me use these to spy on people."

"Spy on people?" Usopp looked from her and the squirrels. "How's that possible?"  
"I can see what they see and hear what they hear, Master Usopp," Shadow said.

"No way! Really?" Usopp looked at her then back at the squirrels. "How is that possible? They're separate from you."

"They are. But they're not," Shadow said.

"Does that mean they are living breathing creatures?" Chopper asked. Reaching out he tapped one with his hoof. It chattered angrily at him. He jumped back. "I'm sorry!"

"Apologizes, Master Chopper." Shadow bowed her head. Her body trembled. "I cannot control all that they do."

"Don't worry about it." Sanji placed his hand on her head. "Continue."

Shadow lifted up. "I don't know how I can do this, but I can send them off to places away from me."

"No way." Luffy took a closer look at the squirrels. "Let me see." He put his hands behind his back. "I'm holding a number behind my back. Use one of them and tell me what it is."

"Luffy, you're being rude. But I have to admit I'm not finding this easy to believe either," Nami said. "Separating your shadow into creatures and being able to see what they see and hear what they hear?"

"Indeed. It sounds so unreal." Brook laughed. "But then I'm a living skeleton. People have said that about me too."

"Give us a demonstration, Shadow," Sanji said.

"Yes, Master." Shadow nodded at one of the squirrels. It scurried around to Luffy's back. "Master Luffy is holding up two fingers. His left index finger and his right index finger."

"She's right!" Luffy showed him his hands.

"That's super amazing!" Franky said.

"Are squirrels the only animals you can create?" Chopper asked.

"No. They are not." Shadow looked at the squirrels. They scampered together then morphed into a copy of Chopper.

Luffy laughed and clapped. "She made Chopper! That's so cool!"

"What?!" Chopper inched closer to his likeness. "That's me?!"

"Unbelievable," Usopp said. "It really does look like him. It's an exact copy."

"Can you do people too?" Zoro asked.

"No, Master Zoro," Shadow said.

"Huh? Why not?" Zoro asked.

"I don't know, Master Zoro." Shadow shook her head. "When I do this it's always animals that I create." Lifting her hand her shadow gathered in it. She closed her fingers around it, forming it into a sword. "I can also make weapons like this."

"Is there anything else you can do with your shadows?" Brook asked.

"No, Master Brook. This and what I did last night are the only things I can do," Shadow said. Her shadow sword and squirrels slipped back into her shadow.

"I see. Well, it's rather amazing that you can do this," Brook said. "I'm impressed."

"It is impressive but we still don't even know what this is," Sanji said. "The only thing we know for sure is it's not a devil fruit. So is it some sort of other power she obtained for is it something she was born with? Shadow, do you know?"

"I do not." Shadow shook her head. "I'm sorry."

"It's fine. Nothing for you to apologize for," Sanji said.

"At least we know she won't explode and destroy the ship," Nami said. "I was worried about that."

"Can you create any kind of animal you wish?" Robin asked.

"I don't know," Shadow said. "My former master only asked me to use certain ones to…"

"You can tell us, Shadow," Sanji said when she didn't continue.

Shadow twiddled her fingers.

"He's not going to hurt you anymore," Sanji added. A few minutes passed by.

"He had me spy on people," she finally said.

"Considering the business he was in that would aid him in becoming as rich as he is." Robin stood up. She cupped her chin in thought. "That could also account for why Shadow is so reserved. He would want her to keep all of this a secret. If everyone knew about her abilities they would want her for themselves. So he beat her down, physically and mentally, until she understood to keep quiet about it."

"You've got a point there. If I used someone with Shadow's abilities to gain a fortune I wouldn't want anyone to know about her either," Franky said. "I wouldn't beat her down like that but if I was greedy enough then I wouldn't let anyone stop me from reaching the top."

"Then why is she telling us this now?" Usopp asked.

"Probably because she sees us at her new masters since her new master is supposedly dead," Robin said.

"Still it's possible for others to learn about her abilities," Zoro said. "We need to keep on our toes."

"It will also help to teach Shadow to use her abilities to fight," Nami said. "And it'll help us find out if she can do anything else with her abilities."

Sanji sucked on his cigarette then blew out the smoke. "We'll need to hold off on that for a while."

"Why?" Nami asked.

"Because we know that her former master treated her badly when she used her abilities against his wishes," Sanji said.

"He's got a point. We don't want her to freak out on us," Franky said. "I think it would be best if Sanji works with her and we stay out of it."

"Sounds good to me," Nami said.

"How about it, Sanji?" Usopp asked. "Are you ready for something like this?"  
"I already told you all that I'm responsible for her since I brought her here. So I'll do what I need to and get her through this," Sanji said. He looked at Shadow. The confusion in her eyes was obvious. But it was what he was expecting. "All right, Shadow? I'm going to work with you on your abilities."

"As you wish, Master," Shadow said.

"Then it's all settled," Luffy said.

"I'll get started on the aquarium room then. We're going to need to get a mattress for the bed though." Franky stood up. "We don't have a spare around here."

"It'll probably be a good idea to work with Shadow on land," Sanji said. "That way if she loses control she won't damage the ship."

"I'll look for islands that will work for those goals," Nami said. "Go ahead and start on the bedroom."

Franky nodded and headed inside of the ship.

Shadow watched him go before looking back at Sanji.

"Why don't we sit for a while? It's a nice day." Sanji sat down on the mast bench. He watched Shadow just stand there for a moment before sitting down beside him. As they sat there he continued to watch her, study her. He could clearly see that she was contemplating everything that happened to day as she sat there with her eyes low and her hands in her lap. And at one point he looked like she wanted to talk about it but she just dropped her eyes back to the floor and sat there. A smiled pulled across his lips. In that moment he just knew she was going to be fine.

The morning came and gone. Seagulls calling overhead told the crew they were near islands but Nami remained silent on them. Hammer and saw noises came from Franky working on the ship. Usopp went inside after a couple hours to help Franky while the rest of the crew stayed out on the deck.

"Man, this is boring," Luffy whined as he sprawled out on the grass. "I want to go on an adventure. When are we going to get to the next island?"

"We should arrive at an island within the next few days," Nami said.

"What kind of island is it?" Luffy asked.

"How am I supposed to know?!" Nami snapped. "Just relax! Why don't you do some fishing or something?!"

"I don't want to fish," Luffy said.

"Then go help Franky with the remodel if you're that bored!" Nami said.

"No way," Luffy said. "That's even more boring."

Sanji brought his eyes down from the sky when Shadow jumped and leaned against his arm from Nami's shouting. Looking at her he found she was unaware of her reaction. "We could use some fresh fish. I could make it for dinner."

"I'm hungry now," Luffy said.

"Fine. It's about time for lunch anyway. How about you come help me, Shadow?" Sanji said.

"Yes, Master." Shadow nodded and stood.

Sanji stood with her and headed for the kitchen.

"What will you be making for lunch, Master?" Shadow said as they stepped into the room.

"It's Sanji." He opened a few cabinets then hummed. "I'm thinking something with fruit. We have some apples that need to be used up before they start rotting. I could make a pie with them. I haven't done an apple pie in a while."

"Apple pie, Master?" Shadow asked.

"You never had apple pie?" Sanji looked at her. His eyes fell to her waist. Remembering how light she was he figured she might never had tried any kind of dessert before in her life.

"No, Master," she said. "I haven't."

"I see. Well, you're going to get to try it now," Sanji said. "And you can help me peel the apples." He stepped away from the cabinets. Grabbing a large bowl he filled it with all the apples they still had then grabbed a couple knifes and headed for the table. "Come sit with me."

Shadow walked over. She sat down and waited for her instructions.

"Take this knife. And be careful. It's very sharp." Sanji handed her the knife.

Shadow took it.

"Holding the apple like so, you take the knife and press it into the skin ever so slightly then turn the apple like this." Sanji demonstrated peeling the apple for her. "It'll take a lot of practice but if you do it enough you can take off the peeling in one large section."

Shadow picked up an apple. Copying his moves she pressed the knife into the apple's skin. Juice leaked from the cut.

Sanji watched as she slowly turned the knife. He smiled when her lips turned down in an annoyed frown when she cut too deep into the apple, leaving a large chuck on the peeling. He opened his mouth to encourage her to continue but paused when she did. Grabbing another apple he set out to peel it while watching her. He wasn't quiet sure if he was reading the situation correctly but there seemed to be a spark of wanting to learn from Shadow in her eyes. He cringed when her name passed through his mind. It really didn't suit her at all. There had to be a better name for her. "But what could I call her?"

"What was that, Master?" Shadow looked up at him.

"Nothing. I was just talking to myself." Sanji went back to peeling his apple before going on to the next one. Finally done he inspected her work quietly. She didn't do too badly of a job with them considering it was clearly her first time. Some of the apple was left on the peelings but it was understandable.

"I'm sorry, Master." Shadow hung her head. "There's a lot of apple left on the peeling."

"Don't worry about it. I can get it off easily. You did rather well for your first time." Sanji patted her head. Gathering her peelings he sliced off the remaining apple within a few seconds. "See? You'll get better with practice."

Shadow nodded. "Yes, Master."

"Now for the rest." Sanji led her back over to the stove. Like he did with breakfast he instructed her on what he wanted her to do while he mixed up all of the ingredients. And once again, despite her reserved expression, he saw a tiny spark of interest in what they were doing.

A little while later the kitchen filled with warmth from the oven and cinnamon from the pie. Shadow's stomach rumbled with hunger.

"It does smell good doesn't it?" Sanji asked when her cheeks flushed. He pulled the pie out of the oven and sat it down on the cooling rack.

Shadow nodded.

"How would you like to try a piece now?" Sanji asked.

"What?" Shadow looked at him.

"I know it's a bit unorthodox since I prefer my crew to eat a healthy meal before dessert." Sanji cut a piece of piece of pie for her. He sat it on a plate then sat the plate on the bar for it to cool. "But I can make an exception this time. Give it a moment to cool then give it a try."

Shadow's eyes fell to the pie slice. Its golden crust was speckled with cinnamon sugar. Steam rose from hot apples as it cooled.

"Go ahead and sit down," Sanji said. He grabbed a fork out of the drawer and placed it next to the plate.

Shadow stepped over to the stool. She looked at him. When he nodded at her she sat down.

Sanji watched her watching the pie slice. A few minutes passed before she picked up the fork. She cut off the end and blew on it before slipping it into her mouth. Instantly her eyes lit up. "I think you like it."

"Yes, Master. It's very good," Shadow said before taking another bite.

Satisfaction swelled in Sanji's chest as he turned to get lunch ready. It was the first time she had praised his cooking. Before starting lunch he poured her a glass of milk.

An hour later Sanji called everyone in for lunch. The crew filed into the room, giving complements on how good the pies smelled.

"So how's the room going?" Sanji asked when Franky entered into the dinning room.

"Super. It's done now," Franky said. "Sorry it took a bit longer than I thought it would. I couldn't decide where the bed should go better."

"No worries," Sanji said.

"You should check it out after lunch," Franky said. "If you don't like it I can change it before bed time."

"I'm sure it's fine," Sanji said. "We can't use the bed right now anyway. But we'll look it over. Okay, Shadow?"

"Yes, Master." Shadow nodded.

After eating and cleaning things up Shadow stood up and left the room with Sanji and Franky. They stepped into the aquarium room with the others following after them. Part of the room was now blocked off with walls. They entered the new bedroom. She looked around. A bed, minus the mattress, with nightstands on each side was now in the corner of the room as well as a closet and a divider screen sitting beside it. Part of the aquarium was still inside the room.

"So what do you think?" Franky asked. "I left the bench in the room incase you two wanted to sit up and read for a while or something. I also left the tank in but put a curtain up. With how the room curves no one should invade your privacy unless they're inside of the fish tank."

"I think it'll work just fine," Sanji said. "Thanks a lot, Franky."

"Thank you, Master Franky," Shadow said. "It's very nice."

"Enjoy it," Franky said. "If you think of anything else you'd like me to add in just ask."

…

Shadow shifted on the mast bench. Her eyes bounced around between the pirates she was now living with. She wasn't completely sure what to think of them. They were nothing like the people she formally lived with. These pirates were louder than her former master and his family. These pirates would be calm one second then yelling and running around the ship the next minute. It didn't make sense to her why they were like that.

For the majority of the day, since they had left the new bedroom Master Franky had made, three of her masters, Luffy, Usopp, and Chopper, were sitting on the railing with fishing poles in their hands. Master Luffy complained a lot about being bored while he sat there. Something she was never allowed to do.

"Hey! I got something!" Usopp shouted. He tugged on his line. With a splash a large octopus flew into the air.

"What?!" Chopper screamed.

The octopus snapped out its tentacles. They wrapped around Luffy's face. Luffy screamed and fell off the railing. Voice muffled he said, "Help! Get this thing off me!"

"We're coming!" Usopp said as he and Chopper grabbed onto the octopus.

The octopus released Luffy. It turned and glared at Usopp and Chopper. The two dropped the creature when it started snapping out its tentacles at them. They screamed and dashed around the deck. On their second circle around the mast they bumped into the table Nami and Robin had been sitting at all day.

"Hey! Watch it!" Nami grabbed the table to keep it from falling over.

"Then help us!" Usopp and Chopper said.

"Why? You two brought this on yourselves. Besides it's just an octopus," Nami said.

"Thanks a lot!" Usopp and Chopper said.

"I don't understand." Shadow said. "Why are they so scared of it?"  
"They're just being idiots," Sanji said. "You'll get use to them over time."

Shadow glanced at Sanji. The blonde haired man had been beside her all day. The only time he left her side was when he needed to use the bathroom. She didn't understand why though. Her former master never did that. Where he went she had to go too.

A cool wind blew over her exposed skin as the sun sank lower. Goosebumps popped up as she shivered.

"Here." Sanji took off his jacket and placed it over her shoulders. "Don't want you to get sick."

"Thank you, Master." Shadow pulled the jacket around her shoulders. Her nose twitched at the smoky smell the jacket had. She coughed. Rubbing her nose she proceeded to watch her new masters and mistresses.

Nami stretched out with a yawn an hour later. "Well, I'm going to head to bed now."

"I think I will too." Robin closed her book.

"We should get ready for bed as well," Sanji said. "Would you like to use the bathroom first?"

Shadow nodded. She walked over to the bathroom and entered. After going through her routine she stepped back outside and followed Sanji to their new room.

"You go ahead and change," Sanji said before leaving the room again. "I'll be right back."

Shadow watched him go before getting her borrowed nightclothes from Nami out of the closet. She changed into them then sat down on the couch. While alone she thought about everything that happened to her in the short time she had been on this ship. Things were definitely different from before. Not once had she been shocked by her new masters and mistresses, even when she messed up.

Her fingers landed on the wound on her arm. She had even broken a glass and Master Sanji didn't get upset with her. Instead, he told her it wasn't her fault. Her fingers lifted to her forehead. He even placed his lips on her forehead, a move that had never been done to her.

"Something wrong, Shadow?"

Shadow jumped at Sanji's unexpected voice reappearing in the room. "N-no, Master. Nothing's wrong. I was just…"

"You can tell me." Sanji sat beside her on the couch. "You don't have to keep your feelings inside. And you don't have to have permission to speak to us."

Shadow swallowed. Her heart rate sped up. His words confused her. She didn't need permission to speak to them? She licked her lips. Pulse racing she found herself saying, "I was…I was just wondering what that was you did before."

"What did I do?" Sanji asked.

"This." She touched her forehead again. "You put your lips here. Why?"

"Oh that. It was a kiss," Sanji said. "As to why I did it…I'm not exactly sure myself. It just felt like the right thing to do in the moment. You don't hate that I did it, do you?"  
"No." Shadow shook her head. "I just…never seen it before. No one has done it to me either."

"You've never seen a kiss before?" Sanji asked. "Didn't your master ever kiss anyone? Is he married?"  
"He's married. He also has a son," Shadow said. "But I don't think I've ever seen anyone kiss anyone. What does it mean?"  
"Well, a kiss can mean many things," Sanji said. "It can mean that people are just friends. It's an affectionate action. It can also mean that a man loves a woman."

"Love?" Shadow looked up at him.

"Love can also have multiple meanings. Like I love my crew because they are my friends," Sanji said. "There's also love for a sister or brother or even romantic love."

Shadow's mind swirled with confusion. "I don't understand."

"I figured as much." Sanji placed his elbows on his knees and leaned forward. "It can be very hard to explain."

"Do you…do you love me?" Shadow asked.

"Huh?" Sanji's eyes widened. He looked at her.

"You brought me to this place. And you're different from my former master," Shadow said.

"Well, I guess in a way you could say that I do. I was very angry when I learned that you were hurt by someone who should have protected you," Sanji said.

"I still don't understand." Shadow dropped her eyes to the floor.

"I know. But that's okay. You'll eventually figure it out," Sanji said. "It's not something you can in one night though. But I'll help you learn what it means."

Shadow continued to stare down at the floor. Her mind continued to swirl with confusion and uncertainty of everything that was happening. She licked her lips. The desire to speak was growing stronger inside of her. But her former master's words and actions fought against them. They pounded her into silence. So she remained silent.

"Shadow, you don't have to be scared to talk to me. You've been doing a really good job at it," Sanji said. "So continue."

Shadow listened to his words and thought about his actions. His actions all day told her she could talk to him. Yet she remained silent on what she wanted to really say. "No, Master. There's nothing else I wanted to say. I'm sorry for taking up so much time before bed."

"Shadow." Sanji sighed.

Shadow grabbed the blanket that was on the couch and laid down. She listened to Sanji sigh again. His presence moved away from her. The light went out before his presence reappeared beside her. She felt him lying down on the couch. She closed her eyes. She forced her brain to shut off and silently thanks the man beside her that he didn't try to make her talk.

…

Sanji laid on the couch. His mind worked over what little Shadow had told him before going to bed. It was obvious there was something she wanted to tell him. Still he wasn't going to push her into doing it. She needed to understand that she could talk to him and the crew. She needed to understand that she didn't need to have permission to speak. And he knew that was going to take time. He just needed to give her a little more time. Things would get better for her. He would make sure they did.

Closing his eyes he settled own into his own pillow.

Sometime later something prompted him to wake up. He found that to be Shadow. At some point she had moved closer to him. Her head was almost touching his. He smiled. She seemed like such a bright young woman despite all she had been through. And if he was reading her correctly she was a social young woman. She wanted to talk to him and the others but was never given the chance to.

Then something lit up in his mind.

"That's it!" Sanji said. He clamped his hand over his mouth then looked down at Shadow. She was still sleeping. He didn't wake her up with his little outburst. "I finally figured out a name for you." Reaching out for her he brushed her bangs away from her face before letting them fall back into place. "From now on you're going to be called Siria."

 **The Keeper of the Worlds: This is the first time I'm using this ability so we'll see what happens.**

 **Crazy4Manga: Yeah, it is. I'm not sure exactly how to do that.**

 **Clarezine: Thanks. I'm trying to improve on my writing.**


	5. Shopping & Training

Shopping & Training

Shadow yawned and stretched out her body before sitting up.

"Good morning, Shadow," Sanji said. "Did you sleep well?"

"Yes, Master." Shadow nodded. Looking up she found the man was already dressed. He was sitting on the couch with a smile and appeared to want something from her. "Did you need something, Master?"

"Actually, I do. I wanted to talk to you. So hurry up. Use the bathroom and get dressed so we can talk before the others interrupted us," Sanji said.

"Uh, yes, Master." Shadow jumped from the couch. She grabbed her clothes from the closet and rushed to the bathroom. Her pulse hammered as she went through her morning routine. She wondered if she had done something that upset her master. But he wouldn't be smiling if she had. So what did he want to talk to her about? Done in the bathroom she rushed back to their room. Placing her nightclothes on the couch beside her she waited for him to talk.

"I have some good news." Sanji's smile grew. "I've decided on a name for you."

"I have a name, Master." Shadow blinked. It didn't make sense to her to get a new name.

"I know that. But that name doesn't suit you at all. It's like your former master called you that only because you could manipulate shadows. You need a real name. Something better. Something that actually suits you," Sanji said. "And I believe I've come up with the correct name for you. It's brilliant!"

"What is it, Master?" Shadow asked.

"Siria," Sanji said.

"Siria?" Shadow tasted the name on her tongue. It sounded nice yet completely foreign.

"It means sun bright or glowing," Sanji said.

"I don't understand. I'm neither the sun or glowing," Shadow said.

"It's not meant to be taken literally," Sanji said. "From what I've seen of you so far you appear to be a very bright girl with the desire to be social."

Shadow's eyebrows knitted. It didn't appear to her that she was neither of those either.

"It's confusing to you. I know." Sanji nodded. "But trust me. This name is better for you. It reflects your true personality."

Shadow dropped her eyes to the floor. She didn't see it. She wasn't like the name at all. "If that is what you wish to call me, Master."

"Shadow, I mean Siria." Sanji placed his hand over hers.

Shadow's eyes widened at the touch.

"Look at me, please."

Shadow kept her eyes on the floor for a second before looking up at him.

"Trust me," he said.

Shadow watched him for several minutes before slowly nodded. "Then I will be your Siria. I will be your sun glow."

Sanji nodded. "Then let's get breakfast ready."

Shadow stood and followed him out of the room. In her mind she tested the name over and over again. For some reason she noticed her new name had the same amount of letters as her master's name. She wondered if it was done on purpose. Did he choose that as a statement she was his slave? He had said she was no longer a slave. Maybe it just happened to come out that way. She didn't know.

"Good morning," Robin said as she entered the kitchen.

"Good morning, my darling Robin! Don't you look lovely this morning. Did you sleep well?" Sanji turned to the older woman.

Siria studied Sanji's face. The twisted up differently than she had seen it before. Her eyes then trailed over the woman's clothes. She didn't see any difference from what she's seen Robin wear before.

"Thank you. And, yes, I slept rather well." Robin smiled. "And how are you this morning? You seem livelier than usual."

"Oh, that. I guess I am since I figured out a name for Shadow." Sanji glanced over at the younger girl standing quietly in the room.

"Is that so?" Robin also looked at the girl. "And how are you this morning?"

"Fine. Thank you," Siria said.

"May I ask what your name is?" Robin asked.

"Uh." Siria looked to Sanji. She wasn't sure if she should use her name now.

"It's okay." Sanji nodded. "You can tell anyone your name. Give it a try."

"Um, it's…Siria," she said.

"Siria? Such a lovely name," Robin said.

"Uh, thank you." Siria turned back to the stove. She stirred the oatmeal while thinking how natural the name rolled off her tongue. Maybe her master was right. Maybe the name did suit her better than Shadow did. She continued to try it out when the rest of her masters and mistresses came into the room. And each time the name became more and more familiar to her. Everyone appeared to like it as well. Though she wasn't really sure if they liked her new name or if they were just saying they liked it because Sanji was in the room and was the one who picked it out for her.

"Siria, huh?" Zoro said. "I suppose that suits her well enough. It's a lot better than Shadow. The perverted cook actually made a good decision."

"Shut up, mosshead! I make good decisions all the time!" Sanji snapped.

Siria jumped at his loud tone.

"Sorry, Siria." Sanji settled back in his chair.

"It's all right, Master," Siria said. "It's obvious that you and Master Zoro don't get alone very well. I'm sure I will adjust to your relationship over time."

"Yup!" Luffy laughed. "You'll have to. They argue all the time."

"We can't go a single day without them to getting into at least one argument," Chopper added.

Siria nodded.

"Now all we have to do is get you some new clothes to go with your new name," Nami said.

"How are we going to get her to pick out new clothes if she never makes her own decisions?" Chopper asked.

"I'll go with the girls and help with the shopping," Sanji said.

"You sure that's a good idea?" Usopp asked.

"Are you implying something?" Sanji glared.

"I'm only saying it might not be a good idea with how crazy you get over women." Usopp shrugged. "If we let you go shopping with the girls you might never come back."

"Of course I'll come back!" Sanji said. "I am a member of this crew after all! And I'm going shopping with Siria!"

"Guess we'll see," Usopp said.

Brook laughed. "I think I would like to go shopping with the ladies as well."

"Not going to happen!" Nami punched the skeleton.

"That hurt." Brook landed on the floor. Stream rose from the bump on his head.

…

Over the next couple of days Siria started to grow comfortable with her new name. She answered to it surprisingly easy. And no one seemed to remember her former name anymore. Currently she sat on the mast bench. She watched the clouds as they floated above them.

"Hey," Zoro called from the crow's nest. "There's an island approaching."

The crew scrambled to their feet, but for herself and Sanji. The others leaned over the sides of the ship while Nami went to the helm.

"Looks like we're finally going to get a mattress for our bed," Sanji said. "And we'll get you some clothes of your own."

Siria blinked. She wondered how she was supposed to feel about that. She supposed it would be nice having her own clothes. Mistress Nami's clothes were nice but they were rather loose on her.

The ship slowed to a stop. Birds chirping floated up from the trees.

Franky threw the rope ladder over the side. "Rope ladder down. What are you all going to do first? Are you going to get Siria new clothes? Or shall you go pick out a mattress first?"

"Good question." Nami walked down the stairs. "What do you think, Sanji?"

"Might be best to get the mattress first," Sanji said. "Shopping for clothes will take some time."

Siria looked to the island. The ship had been docked near a thick forest. The town appeared to be less than a mile away from them.

"Are you sure we're far enough away from the town for Siria to use her abilities?" Usopp asked.

"It should be fine," Sanji said. "We can always move the ship if we need to."

"How long are we going to stay here?" Brook asked.

"Most likely however long it takes for the log pose to reset." Nami looked at her wrist. "I'll ask around to see if I can find how long that will be."

"Then how about we meet up with you and Robin in about an hour?" Sanji said. "That should give us enough time to pick out a mattress." He looked to Franky. "Will you come with us? You can bring it back to the ship right away."

"Sure thing, brother." Franky nodded.

"I'm going to go find some food." Luffy jumped off the ship and ran for the town.

Siria watched him become smaller and smaller the farther he got away from the ship.

"Let's go, Siria," Sanji said.

"Yes, Master." Siria followed him over to the rope ladder. Reaching the ground they headed right for the town. She kept her eyes to the ground as she followed her two masters through the town.

"There it is," Franky said.

Siria looked up. He was pointing to a simple wooden building. A sign hung over the door that read: Mattresses And More. They entered into the building. Freshly cut wood filled the room. With a quick glance she found several hand cut bed frames lined up on the floor.

"Welcome," a man said. "What can I do you for?"

"We're looking for a mattress," Sanji said.

"Of course." The man waved his hand towards the displays. "We have plenty. Feel free to check them out."

"Thank you." Sanji nodded before heading farther into the room. "This one looks nice."

Siria glanced up to find he had laid down on one of the mattresses. When he patted the bed, beckoning her, she laid down beside him.

"What do you think?" Sanji asked.

"I don't know." Siria shifted. The bed was softer than the floor but she didn't know if it was a nice mattress or not. She would leave that decision up to her master.

"Let's try a few more before deciding." Sanji got off the bed.

Siria followed him each time he laid down on a bed. Some were harder than others. Over all she had no idea which Sanji would chose.

"I think this one will do fine." Sanji walked back to the seventh one they had tested. "It's got enough support for our bodies but is also soft."

"If that is what you want, Master." Siria nodded.

Sanji sighed. "We'll take this one."

The man from before nodded. "I'll have the workers get one from the back. It'll take a few minutes. Shall I ring up the price for you?"  
"Very well." Sanji walked over to the counter.

Siria followed him. She remained by Sanji's side as he paid for their purchase. A few minutes later two men came out with the mattress.

"Here you go," one of them said. "Shall we help you carry it to your home or ship?"  
"No thanks." Franky picked up the mattress. "I've got it."

"Let's go." Sanji headed for the door. He opened it for Franky.

"Well, I'll take this back to the ship and get it into place. See you two later." Franky walked off.

"See you." Sanji turned to Siria. "Are you ready to go shopping now?"  
"Yes, Master." Siria nodded.

"Great." Sanji headed through the town.

Siria walked behind him before he dropped back to her side.

"I don't want you walking behind me," he said. "I want you walking beside me like this."

"Oh, okay, Master." Siria nodded.

"Have you thought about what kind of clothes you would like to get?" Sanji asked.

"Whatever pleases you, Master," she said.

"This is not going to be easy." Sanji scratched his head.

"I am sorry."

"Don't be. It's not your fault." Sanji shoved his hands into his pockets. His eyes scanned over the women in the town. Most were wearing long dresses, a few were wearing pants, and some were wearing mini skirts. "I'm thinking you should skip the dresses and skirts for now. Maybe only get one or two. I'm fairly sure you've never worn them before. Am I right?"

"Yes." Siria nodded. "My former master forbid me to wear dresses and skirts."

"I'm not surprised," Sanji said. "He probably dressed you like a boy to keep men from seeing how cute you are."

"Cute?" Siria looked up at him.

"That's right." Sanji smiled. "You're cute. And I bet you'll be even cuter in a mini skirt."

Siria's eyebrows knitted. She remembered a few times when people called something or someone cute but was never called it herself.

"Hey! Sanji! Siria! Over here!"

Siria looked to Nami's voice. She spotted the orange haired woman and Robin sitting outside of a small café.

"Hello, ladies." Sanji walked over to them. "Have you been waiting long for us?"  
"Not at all," Nami said. "We've done a little shopping already and decided to stop for a while and wait for you. Since this café is on the main street we figured we'd spot you eventually."

"Oh yeah? We just got done shopping for a mattress," Sanji said. "Franky took it back to the ship."

"Shall we get shopping then?" Robin asked.

Sanji looked at Siria.

"Yes, Mistress," Siria said. "That would be fine."

"Let's go then." Nami stood up.

Siria waited for them to walk ahead of her before remembering Sanji didn't want her to walk behind him. She stepped up to his side.

Sanji smiled at her.

"This is a good place." Nami pointed to a small shop. "We've passed it earlier but haven't gone inside."

Sanji eyed the mannequins in the window display.

Siria followed his lead. The mannequins wore simple clothing, beach like attire.

"Let's check it out." Nami stepped up to the door and entered into the building.

Siria stepped inside. Timidly she glanced up. The store was filled with so many colorful clothes. A few other shoppers were in the store but didn't seem to notice they were there.

"Well, let's get started," Sanji said.

Siria jumped. "Y-yes, Master." She followed him farther into the store. "Um, what would you like me to wear, Master?"

"Do you see anything you like?" Sanji asked.

Siria paused. Her eyes wandered over the clothes before landing back on him. She felt nothing for the clothes. "No, Master. You may decide for me."

Sanji frowned.

"I never thought it would be possible to make someone like this," Nami said. "It's so sad."

Robin nodded.

"Let's try this then." Sanji placed his hand on Siria's shoulder. "How about you and me walk around for a while? When you see something that catches your eye we'll stop and look at it."

"As you say." Siria nodded.

Sanji nodded to Robin and Nami before guiding Siria away from them.

Siria let her eyes drop to the floor.

"This is cute," Sanji said.

Siria looked up to see him holding a short sleeve shirt in his hand. It was light orange with a red heart over the chest.

"What do you think?" Sanji asked.

Siria stared at the shirt. She didn't know what to think of it. All the clothes she had worn before were dull in color. This one was bright. "I…I don't know."

"That's okay." Sanji laid the shirt back down. He continued to guide her around the store.

Siria remained quiet as Sanji showed her clothing after clothing.

"So what do you think, Siria?" Sanji asked.

"Sorry," Siria said. "I still don't know."

"Would you like me to help you decide this time?" Sanji asked.

"If…if you don't mind." Siria ducked her head.

"Don't worry about it." Sanji patted her head. "You're learning. I think we'll get you a bit of a variety. I think orange and black would suit you rather well with your hair and skin tones."

Siria's eyes drifted to the first orange shirt he had shown her. She had no idea why but she couldn't stop looking at it.

"I like that one too," Sanji said.

"I like that one?" Siria asked.

"I think you might." Sanji picked the shirt up off the shelf. "So we'll get it for you." He stepped to the next shelf and pulled a couple spaghetti strap shirts off it. "You'll need some shorts too since we sail in mostly warm weather." He looked around. "There doesn't appear to be much cold weather clothes here. So we'll have to pick some up on another island. But this long sleeve shirt will work if we get into cooler weather."

Siria eyed the long sleeve shirts. The body of them all were white while the sleeves were different colors. He grabbed two of them before picking up some shorts from another shelf. She then followed him to the counter where a lady waited. Sanji placed the clothes on the counter in a small mountain. "Master, are you sure about buying all of these?"

The lady gave her a curious look.

"It's fine, Siria," Sanji said. "You need them."

"Yes, Master." Siria said.

The lady looked back and forth between Sanji and Siria.

Sanji caught the lady's concern and leaned over the counter. "I've recently freed her from being a slave. She hasn't learned yet that she's her own person."

"Uh huh." The woman nodded but her face still held an unsure look. "Will that be all for you?"  
"Yes." Sanji handed over the money then grabbed their bags and left the building.

"Done already?" Nami asked.

"In this store at least," Sanji said. "We still need to get her some shoes. Also, you ladies haven't seen a store that carries coats around here, have you?"

"No," Nami said.

"I figured as much," Sanji said.

"There's a shoe store just around the corner here," Robin said.

They turned the corner and entered the store.

Leather and shoe polish greeted them as they stepped inside.

"Oh! These are so cute!" Nami grabbed a pair of heeled shoes off the closest counter. "I have to get them!"

"They are lovely." Robin smiled.

"We should get Siria a pair of them too!" Nami said.

"That might not be a good idea," Sanji said. "I think it's a safe bet to say she's never walked in high heel shoes. We don't want her to break an ankle."

"Good point," Nami said. "Though I think we should have her try them someday. You never know when you'll need a good pair of high heels."

Siria locked onto the thin heel poking out of the shoe. It looked like it would break with one step. She couldn't imagine herself or anyone standing let alone walking in them. When Sanji stepped away from her she followed after him. She flicked her eyes back and forth between the floor and the shoes. Once again she was lost at what she should do. And once again Sanji stepped up and helped her.

"Take a seat here." Sanji waved to a stool sitting alone in an isle.

Siria sat down on it.

Sanji placed the bags he was carrying on the floor beside her before pulling a pair of shoes off a shelf. He knelt down in front of her.

Siria tensed when his warm hand cupped the back of her ankle. He lifted her foot and slipped her foot inside of the shoe.

"Wow!" Sanji smiled. "Perfect fit! I can't believe I guessed your shoe size right on the first try."

Siria looked at the shoe. It was different from the shoes her former master had her wear. With these she could see the majority of her foot. She wiggled her toes. "What are they?"

"Huh?"

Siria ducked her head. "Apologies, Master. I didn't mean to question you."

"Oh, don't worry. If you don't know about something just ask," Sanji said. "These are called sandals. People often wear them when traveling in warm weather. We'll get a pair of them and a pair of boots for you. Later if you want another type of shoes you can get them."

Siria glanced at him. Again he didn't hit or yell at her for making a mistake. She didn't understand it. This man was so different from her former master.

Sanji picked up the box and her clothes before leading her to another isle where they found a pair of boots for her to wear. They paid for them and stepped back outside. "So what else does Siria need?" His cheeks tinted pink. "Oh, right. She'll need womanly supplies."

"Don't even think about it." Nami glared. "Leave that up to me and Robin."

"Sure." Sanji nodded. "That suits me just fine. But is there anything else? We've got her shoes, clothing, you'll handle the woman stuff…we have blankets and pillows on the ship."

"Sounds like we have it all until she learns to be her own person," Robin said.

"We might as well head back to the ship then," Sanji said. "If we're lucky Luffy won't be there. We can work a bit on Siria's abilities without him bugging her." He looked to Nami and Robin. "What are you lovely ladies going to be doing?"

"I think we'll shop a little bit longer before returning to the ship," Nami said.

"All right." Sanji nodded. "We'll see you later then."

Siria watched the two women walk away before looking back at Sanji. He smiled at her before heading back to the ship. The ship rocked on the waves as they climbed up the rope ladder. Silence met them when they reached the deck. "Looks like no one's here. Let's put these in our room then start working with your abilities."

"Yes, Master." Siria followed him into the ship. Her eyes fell to the bed. That mattress was lying in place, which meant Franky did as he said.

"I'll put a sheet on it later," Sanji said.

Siria looked back at him. He placed the bags on the floor then walked back over to her.

"You ready to work with your abilities?"

"Yes, Master," Siria said.

Sanji stepped back out to the deck. He crawled down the rope ladder and led her to a nice grassy spot then sat down. "This looks like a good place." He patted the spot in front of him. "Sit here with me."

Siria sat down, hands folded neatly in her lap.

"So tell me, Siria," Sanji said. "What other animal can you create?"

Siria ducked her head.

"You don't have to be scared of telling me," Sanji said. "I'm sure you're starting to see that you're safe with us. I give you my word no one is ever going to hurt you again."

Siria swallowed. She tightened her hands to keep them from trembling. Her body jerked when Sanji's hand landed on her head.

"Tell me," Sanji whispered.

"I…I wasn't allowed to use my abilities without my former master's permission," Siria said. "I was only allowed to use them when he said. And that was when he had me spy on people."

"Did you use your abilities without his permission at some point?" Sanji asked.

Siria nodded. "J-just once."

"What happened?"  
Siria lifted her hand. Her fingers lightly touched a round scar on her arm.

"I see." Sanji crossed his arms. "He hurt you. I should have known." He paused before asking, "What did you do?"

"I made…a wolf," Siria said.

"A wolf? You can create a creature of that size?" Sanji asked.

Siria nodded.

"Show me."

Siria stole a quick glance at him. His eyes were trained on her. His expression was soft and something else she couldn't define. It was an expression she had never seen before in her former master's eyes nor from his family. She couldn't help but noticed it made her feel better about using her abilities to show him her wolf.

"Go ahead." Sanji nodded, his voice gentle and assuring.

Siria lowered her eyes back to her hands. She closed her eyes. Her shadow shifted. Opening her eyes she found Sanji staring at her wolf. The creature stood by her side. Its tail flicked, brushing against her arm before settling back into place.

Sanji opened his mouth.

Before he could say anything Siria sent a silent message to her wolf to extend its claws. The wolf's claws grew to two inches long.

"So you can control the shape of the creatures you make," Sanji said.

"Yes, Master." Siria nodded. "I can make them bigger or smaller, but mostly smaller. They were less noticeable by others."

"I wonder."

Siria looked at him. Sanji was cupping his chin in thought.

"I wonder if it's possible for you to do more with your shadows than this," Sanji said.

"I don't understand, Master," Siria said.

"I mean expand from what you've already done." Sanji pointed at the wolf. "Can you tell this thing to attack?"  
"I don't know," Siria said. "Master never allowed me to attack anyone with my shadows."

"That figures. He wanted to keep you a secret after all," Sanji said. He looked around. "Maybe there's something we can use." His eyes landed on a small log that was probably washed ashore by a storm. It was completely dried out by the sun. He pointed at it. "Ask your wolf to pound on that log."

Siria looked at the log. Uncertainty washed over her body. She wasn't allowed to attack anything before but reminded herself she was with a different master now. Hands trembling she told her wolf to attack. "Go. Attack that log."

The wolf raced towards the log. It leaped into the air them pounced down on the target. The bark snapped and crumbled under the shadow creature's weight.

"That could come in handy in protecting yourself," Sanji said.

"Master?" Siria looked back at him.

"We're pirates, Siria." Sanji turned his eyes to her.

Siria dropped her eyes back to the ground.

"We're going to be attacked many other pirates, bounty hunters, and the navy," Sanji said. "You need to learn to protect yourself. It'll take a while before you're ready to do it all on your own. So until that time I will protect you. As will the crew."

"I don't understand, Master," Siria said.

"I know you don't, but you will in time." Sanji took his cigarette out of his mouth and exhaled. "I think that's enough of that for today."

"Master Chopper and Master Zoro are coming back," Siria said.

"Huh?" Sanji blinked.

"The wind shifted," Siria said. "It's carrying their scent to my wolf. The wolf shares the scent with me."

"I see." Sanji glanced over his shoulder. Sure enough Chopper and Zoro were walking towards them. "Amazing."

"We're back!" Chopper bounced over to them. He paused when he spotted the shadow wolf. "What?! A wolf?!"

"Relax, Chopper," Sanji said. "It's one of Siria's."

"Oh." Chopper exhaled. "I see. That's good. I thought it was going to eat me."

"So she made that thing." Zoro looked at it.

Siria ducked her head. The shadow wolf melted back into a shadow and rejoined her own shadow.

"Siria was able to smell your scents through the shadow wolf," Sanji said.

"Fascinating." Zoro sat down on the ground.

"So what are you doing back here so early?" Sanji asked.

"There was no place with booze." Zoro laid back with his hands behind his head. "So I came back."

"I didn't find anything of interest either," Chopper said. "Though Luffy and Usopp were having fun."

"Figures. They could have fun in the middle of a storm," Sanji said.

"Did you get Siria's shopping done?" Chopper asked.

"We did." Sanji nodded.

"That's great." Chopper smiled.

Siria continued to sit quietly as Chopper and Sanji spoke to each other and Zoro fell asleep. A little while later the sun slowly began to sit on the horizon. The remaining Straw Hats started arriving back to their ship.

"Hey!" Luffy called out. A big grin was present on his and Usopp's faces as they ran closer.

"What's he so excited about?" Nami asked.

"Who knows?" Sanji laid wood in a pile. He flicked his lighter until it lit and touched the flame to a leaf. The leaf caught fire. He placed it under the wood. The bark snapped. The flame whooshed, catching their firewood on fire.

Heat washed over Siria's skin.

"You're not going to believe what we learned about today!" Luffy plopped down by the fire. "There's this haunted cave on the island!"

"Haunted cave?" Brook asked. "Why would you care about that?"  
"Because there's treasure inside of it!" Luffy laughed. "Let's go check it out!"

"How about you explain to us what exactly you're talking about before we go rushing off to the cave?" Franky said.

"I'll explain it since Luffy's too excited," Usopp said. "We were eating at this restaurant when some people got talking about this cave that's on the island. They were trying to dare a friend of theirs to go or something. Luffy, of course, found it appealing and wanted to go immediately. But as a calm and collected vice captain I knew that wasn't possible."

"Meaning you were scared." Zoro grinned.

"I was not!" Usopp snapped.

Siria shifted closer to Sanji.

"Anyway, I knew it was a bad idea, but when they mentioned some treasure being hidden there by some pirates Luffy couldn't sit still," Usopp said.

"Treasure?!" Nami squealed.

"No one knows if the treasure is actually there," Usopp said.

"It's still worth checking out," Nami said.

"Yeah! So let's go!" Luffy cheered.

"Not tonight we're not," Sanji said. "It's too late for that."

"Aw." Luffy's shoulders slumped. "Why?"

"The sun is about to set," Robin said. "It'll be tough making it through the forest at this time of night."

"Do you two even know where the cave is?" Nami asked.

"Nope," Luffy said.

"And that's another reason we can't go," Sanji said. "You'll just have to wait until tomorrow to go. Right now I'll get dinner started."

"Great!" Luffy said. "I'm starving!"

Eyes locked onto the fire, Siria wrapped her arms around her trembling body when a cool wind lifted off the ocean.

"Here." Sanji placed his jacket around her shoulders.

Siria jumped. Looking up she found Sanji smiling at her.

"Don't want you to get sick," he said.

"Thank you, Master." Siria pulled his coat around her. It smelled of smoke from his cigarettes and the fire smoke. She remained quiet as the Straw Hats did what they always did. She found herself watching them. Luffy was still going on about the cave with the crew listening to him but for Zoro who had fallen asleep again. Her eyes then drifted out to the ocean. The moon had risen. It lit up the dark water. There was enough light to see ships but none were on the water. She wondered if her former master's family was out there looking for her. Her eyes drifted back to the crew. She then wondered if they really would fight to keep her with them.

...

 **Crazy4manga: Thanks. Though I'm not sure if the development is going to come off as well as I'd like it to. Mostly it's a wait and see game. I'm writing but still feel like I have writer's block.**

 **Clarezine: Thanks. I thought for a moment to keep calling her shadow but I didn't like it as it's too cliche for her abilities.**


	6. Caves

Caves

Siria shivered, pulling her cover tighter around her. Opening her eyes she stared into the fire. A tickle formed in her throat. She coughed.

"You okay, Siria?" Sanji asked.

Siria lifted her eyes from the fire. Sanji was standing there cooking something. "Yes, Master, I'm fine." She sat up, keeping her blanket around her. Looking around she found everyone else was already up. Luffy, Usopp, and Chopper were over at the edge of the island looking down into the water. "Did I over sleep?"

"A little bit," Sanji said.

"I'm sorry," Siria said.

"Don't worry about it," Sanji said. "You looked tired so we left you alone."

"You know," Nami then said. "I've been thinking that we need to get Siria a swimming suit."

"Huh?" Sanji looked at the navigator.

"We might not go swimming a lot but we still do it on occasion," Nami said.

"I don't know," Sanji said.

Everyone paused and looked at him.

"What?" Sanji asked.

"You don't want to see a cute girl in a swimming suit?" Usopp asked.

"Are you feeling okay?" Chopper asked. He pulled out his thermometer and blood pressure cuff. "Want me to give you a physical?"

"I'm fine." Sanji went back to breakfast. "I'm only thinking of Siria. I'm sure you all can tell she's a very cute young woman. We don't need guys hitting on her."

"It's official," Nami said. "He is sick."

"I am not," Sanji huffed.

"She'll be fine," Franky said. "We'll be with her after all."

"Fine." Sanji shook his head. "We'll pick her up one before leaving the island."

"We can grab it when we go back into town," Nami said. "We have to find a map to the cave Luffy was talking about last night."

"So we're really going," Zoro said.

"We all don't have to go," Nami said.

"Good," Zoro said. "Then I'm staying here."

"Aw, come, Zoro," Luffy said. "It'll be fun."

"I'm not interested in going marching through a damp cave," Zoro said.

"Just leave him here," Sanji said. "I'm sure he's just scared."

"I'm not scared of anything." Zoro glared.

"Sure." Sanji smirked.

"Fine! I'm going!" Zoro said.

…

Siria yawned as she walked back to the town with Sanji and Nami. The rest of the pirates decided to stay behind and get ready for their trip to the cave. A tickle appeared in her throat. She cleared her throat, hoping the tickle would go away. It did.

"There's a shop with swimming suits." Nami pointed to a building with swimming suits displayed in the windows. She entered with the other two following her.

Siria looked around. There appeared to be more colors here than there were in the stores they have visited yesterday. And there were so many styles. Styles she didn't have names for.

"I think this one will do nicely." Sanji held up a one piece, plan black wetsuit.

"Come on. Seriously?" Nami crossed her arms. "We can at least get her something a little cuter than that."

"It'll be just fine." Sanji shook the suit. "It's perfect for her."

"Says the one who always turns into a horndog when a woman wears a bikini." Nami rolled her eyes. "Ignore him, Siria." She plucked an orange swimming suit with two white stripes running up the left side from the hip to the shoulder. "Try this one on."

Siria took the suit from Nami. When Nami pulled back a curtain she stepped inside. Siria looked around the small room for a moment before changing into the swimming suit. A strap fell off her shoulder. She put it back in place before pulling back the curtain so she could show it to the pirates.

"So cute." Sanji nodded. "You look amazing in orange, my beautiful sunshine."

Siria shifted. Something about his words gave her an uncomfortable feeling in her chest.

"He's right. It is cute." Robin nodded.

"It is." Nami appraised the suit. "But it looks a little bit." She grabbed another one. "You should try a size smaller."

Siria took the swimming suit from Nami and ducked back into the changing room. Dressed she showed it to them again.

"Much better." Nami nodded. "What do you think, Siria?"

Siria looked at Nami then Sanji.

"Do you like it?" Sanji asked.

"You do, Master. So it will do," Siria said. "May I change back now?"

"Sure." Sanji sighed.

For a third time in a few minutes, Siria went back into the changing room. Her eyes locked onto her form in the mirror. Before now she had only known what a swimming suit was and what it was for. Now she was wearing one for the first time in her life. Confusion swirled in her head. Everything had drastically changed within a few minutes and kept changing. Her hand reached for her head. She pressed her fingers to her temple and closed her eyes.

…

"Hey, Sanji?" Nami asked. "Can I ask you a question?"

"What is it?" Sanji looked at the navigator.

"Why are you being so different with Siria?" Nami asked.

"What do you mean?" Sanji blinked then cocked his head. "I'm not acting any different with her."

"Any other time you'd make one of those stupid faces when getting the opportunity to see a woman in a swimming suit." Nami planted a hand on her hip. "It's obvious you've noticed Siria is a good looking young woman. So what exactly is she to you?"  
"What is she to me? She's my responsibility," Sanji said. "I thought I already told you this. I brought her to our crew so I'm going to take care of her."

"You did tell us that." Nami nodded. "But it's still odd to see you acting like this." She waved a hand at him. "I'm sorry. I guess I'm just use to you acting a certain way with women."

"Well, I have to be honest and say that I feel different towards Siria than I do to you and Robin." Sanji looked to the changing room. "Siria needs some good times. And despite only have being with her a few days I want to make her happy." His eyes softened. "She's my friend now. I'm going to do what I can for her. She's going to have a better life now. I guarantee it. I suppose you can look at me as her older brother."

"I suppose that's a good way to look at it." Nami nodded again.

"In fact." Sanji closed his eyes for a moment before erupting into a squeal. "I really do want to see Siria in cute clothes! I know she'll look just darling in a mini skirt!"

"Now there's the Sanji I know." Nami smiled.

Sanji cleared his throat. "But I won't subject her to that until she gets her confidence up. Cute clothes will draw unwanted attention to her." A protective glare pulled over his face. He glared out at nothing but with determination. "And as her friend and older brother I won't let that happen."

The curtain pulled back.

Sanji smiled upon seeing Siria stepping out.

"I'm dressed, Master," Siria said.

"Should we keep looking?" Nami asked. "It's good to have options."

"Might as well." Sanji stepped away from the changing room. He scanned the room. A few other women were shopped as well as one other man. His eyes narrowed in on the man when he looked in their direction. His chest tightened with a cloud of suspicion. He stepped closer to Siria, making sure to make eye contact with the man. When he did the man looked away and headed for the door. It made Sanji even more suspicious but he relaxed when the man was out of the building. The cloud of suspicion lingered in his chest. He turned back to the girls to find Nami talking to Siria about a swimming suit. Despite it being a two piece it covered plenty with its sporty design.

"This one is really cute." Nami held it up to Siria. "You should definitely get it. It matches your hair too."

Siria looked at Sanji.

"Sure." Sanji nodded. "It's good for a woman to have options like Nami said."

"That settles it then," Nami said. "We're getting you these two."

Sanji's eyes drifted back to the door. He scanned it for the man from before but found him nowhere.

"Something wrong, Master?" Siria asked.

"It's nothing." Sanji shoved his hands in his pockets and followed Nami to the check out counter.

"So now all we have to do is find directions to the cave." Nami placed the swimming suits on the counter.

"Are you talking about the haunted cave with the pirate treasure?" the woman behind the counter asked.

"That's the one," Nami said.

Sanji looked at the woman. His heart thundered wildly upon seeing her curvy body. "Wow! You're cute!"

The woman chuckled and flashed the ring on her finger. "I'm married."

"Darn it!" Tears poured down Sanji's face. "I should have known such a beauty was already taken."

"Anyway," Nami said. "That's the one we're looking for. Do you know where it is?"  
"I do." The woman nodded. Reaching under the counter she pulled out a map. "This will show you the way."

"You have a map to the cave?" Sanji glanced over Nami's shoulder when she unrolled the map.

"That cave's pretty famous around here." The woman rang up the purchases.

"Thank you." Nami paid for the swimming suits. They left the store. "Well, that was easy. I thought it would take us longer to get directions to the cave."

"It is a bit strange." Sanji scanned the area. He spotted a man that looked like the on inside of the store. His body tensed in wonder if it was the same one or another one.

"Luffy will be happy." Nami tucked the map into the bag.

"Is something wrong, Master?" Siria asked.

"No, it's nothing." Sanji smiled at her. He forced his body to relax.

"Let's get back to the ship," Nami said. "Maybe we'll get the treasure quickly."

The three exited the town and strolled down the path to where the rest of the crew was waiting for them.

"Hey! About time!" Luffy waved to them with both hands.

"Did you get directions?" Usopp asked.

"Better. We got a map." Nami pulled the map out and waved it.

"So great!" Luffy chuckled. "Let's get going."

"Hold on." Nami turned to the ship. "I have to put Siria's swimming suits on the ship before we go."

"I'll do it!" Luffy grabbed the bag from Nami's hand. Swinging his arm around, multiple times, he tossed the bag onto the ship. "Now let's go!"

"You're so reckless even with clothes." Nami huffed in annoyance.

Robin chuckled. "Might as well get going now."

"Yeah!" Luffy cheered. "Let's go! This is going to be so much fun!"

"All right, all right." Nami opened the map. "Looks like we can head into the forest here. We should reach a dirt path in about thirty minutes."

"Let's go then," Sanji said.

"Should we leave someone with the ship?" Franky asked.

"It'll be fine," Nami said.

Luffy and Usopp ran towards the forest.

Sanji smiled at Siria then followed after the crew.

The warm sun was quickly blocked out from the canopy of the trees. The salty air gave way to tree bark and flowers. Luffy and Usopp lead the way, stomping down the ankle high grass as they walked. Birds chirped and flew from tree to tree when they passed them.

"This forest has a lot of thick brush." Zoro pushed his way through a bush they had wandered into.

"Well, we're heading for a dirt path so we shouldn't have to walk in this for long," Nami said.

"These trees are so huge. And the flowers are very pretty." Robin paused to admire a white flower. "They must get a lot of rain here."

"They really are pretty." Sanji reached out and plucked a white flower from its stem. Turning he placed the flower in Siria's hair. He chuckled when Siria's eyes widened at the unexpected gift. "That really suits you."

"Super cute!" Franky said.

"I think she's a bit stunned," Brook said when Siria didn't respond and her face remained frozen.

"It's probably the first gift she ever gotten from anyone," Nami said.

"Gift?" Siria's face went back to normal.

"Something a person give another person," Sanji said as they continued walking. "It can be a single flower, a handful of flowers, or even chocolates, a hand made card. There are a lot of things that a gift can be."

"Oh. Thank you, Master," Siria said. "It's…nice."

Sanji nodded. He watched her from the corner of his eyes, wondering if she would touch the flower or not. She didn't. It wasn't a surprise to him at all.

…

"Hey! Are we there yet?!" Luffy whined.

"Are you kidding?! We just started walking two minutes ago!" Nami growled.

"Aw! When we'll we be there then?!" Luffy frowned at her. "And it's been longer than two minutes."

"We'll get there when we get there," Nami said.

Sanji glanced around the forest, carefully taking in the world around him. They had been walking for almost thirty minutes when he noticed the birds had stopped chirping. The squirrels and rabbits they had seen appeared to have disappeared as well.

"Hey! We found the path!"

Sanji looked up to see Usopp waving back at them. They broke from the tall grass and bushes.

"So which way now?" Franky looked down both ways of the path.

"We go that way." Nami pointed to the left.

"It's a lot easier walking on this path than that tall grass," Brook said. "And it's such a nice day. I'm glad we decided to do this."

"If…if it's okay for me to ask," Siria said.

"Hm?" Sanji glanced over at her. "Ask anything you want."

Siria nodded. "What is it we're doing out here?"

"We're going treasure hunting!" Luffy grinned back at her.

"Treasure hunting?" Siria blinked.

"It's where we go out and find treasure that other pirates have buried," Sanji said. "Pirates love finding treasure. It the main way we're able to pay for things."

"So you take someone else's money, Master?" Siria asked.

"You could say that," Nami said. "But if a person leaves their treasure behind we're allow to take it."

"So taking their treasure is like taking someone's idea," Siria said. "Like my former master did. It's stealing."

"I guess you could say that," Sanji said. "Well, yes, it is stealing."

"And I am a pirate now?" Siria asked.

"Of course you are." Luffy turned around and walked backwards. "But you're also our friends. We're going to have a lot of fun. You'll love being a pirate. We're the freest people on the planet. You can do anything you want."

Sanji watched Siria dropped her eyes back to the ground. Her eyes spun with Luffy's words and confusion. He wondered if she was working through the changes in her life. He wondered if she was trying to accept the way things were now. Then an idea came to him. "Hey, Siria, how about you show the rest of the crew your wolf?"

"Wolf?" Chopper asked. "What do you mean?"

"Yes, Master." Siria's shadow shifted. Her shadow morphed as her wolf appeared.

"What?!" Chopper jumped upon Franky's shoulder. His eyes bugged wide with fear. "It's a wolf! Don't let it eat me!"

"Is that thing for real?" Usopp asked.

"It's just like the squirrels," Brook said.

"So cool! Can I ride it?!" Luffy ran over to the wolf.

"It's a bit small to ride," Nami said.

"It'll probably bite you," Robin said.

"No it won't." Luffy bounced around the wolf, checking it out from every side. "The wolf is Siria. And Siria is our friend."

"You wish to ride, Master Luffy?" Siria asked.

"I do! And it's Luffy! I'm not your master!"

Siria looked at her wolf. The wolf grew bigger, to half the size of a horse.

"So cool!" Luffy's eyes sparkled.

"So it wont eat me?" Chopper asked.

"Doesn't look like it," Franky said. "It is a shadow after all. Shadows don't eat anything. Or do they, Siria?"  
"No, Master Franky," Siria said. "My shadow creatures do not eat." She lifted her fingers to her temple.

Sanji caught a flash of uncertainty in her eyes. "Siria?"

"I-it's nothing, Master." Siria dropped her hand to her side.

"Amazing," Brook said. "Did you learn what else she could do?"

"No." Sanji's eyes remained on Siria. It was obvious she was hiding something from them. "I decided to take things slow. So far all I know she can do is create animals. Her former master wanted her to use only small ones so no one would notice them."

"That makes sense." Nami rolled up the map.

"So fun!" Luffy jumped upon the wolf's back. "Let's go!"

Siria nodded when the wolf looked at her. Their group started walking again.

Sanji continued to sneak glances at Siria while trying to figure out what she was hiding from them.

"This is great! We won't have to walk everywhere now," Luffy said.

"Hey! I want to ride!" Usopp rushed up to the wolf and clambered up onto its back.

"Don't get a head of yourselves now," Sanji said.

"What do you mean?" Brook asked.

"We have no idea how long Siria can hold her shadow animals," Sanji said. "For all we know the longer she has them out the more tired she'll get."

"Well, this is a good opportunity to try it," Robin said. "We're shielded by the trees so no one in the town will see us."

"Good point." Sanji drew his eyes back to Siria. He studied her expression. It was slightly tense in concentration. The concern she held before was completely gone now. _I hope doing this doesn't hurt her. She looks like she might have trouble holding the shadow wolf's form for long. But Robin's right. We need to see what she can do._ He kept walking while occasionally looking over at her to make sure she was fine. With each massing minute he noticed her look of concentration grew more and more tense. Sweat spotted her forehead. "Siria, if you need to release the wolf then do it."

"But Master Luffy and Master Usopp wishes to ride," Siria said. Her breathing became faster despite the fact she was trying to hide it.

"They can walk. It won't kill them," Sanji said. "It's obvious you're straining to control the wolf's form."

As if on cue the shadow wolf liquefied back into shadows. Luffy and Usopp fell to the ground with a hard thump.

"Aw, man," Luffy whined. "We only got to right for a minute."

Siria gasped for air and dropped to her knees. "I'm sorry, Master Luffy, Master Usopp."

"See what you idiots did?!" Sanji whacked them over their heads. "You wore her out! And you rode for five minutes! Now apologize to her!"

"We're sorry." They bowed their heads to her.

"Five minutes, huh?" Robin cupped her chin with her fingers. "I wonder if she can expand that time."

"Only training will answer that question," Zoro said. "But I don't see why she wouldn't be able to."

"That would be awesome." Luffy stood up. "We could ride even longer then."

Sanji knelt down next to Siria. He placed his hand on her shoulder. She flinched. "Take it easy. You did just fine." A few minutes passed. "Can you stand?"

"Yes, Master." Siria pushed herself to her feet. Her knees wobbled.

"Well, that's not going to do." Sanji stepped in front of her. Grabbing her wrist he pulled her onto his back.

Siria stiffened. "N-no, Master. It's not appropriate for you to-"

"Don't worry about it." Sanji smiled back at her. "I don't mind carrying you. You're weak right now. Just sit back relax."

Confusion swirled in her eyes but she didn't respond.

They walked on.

Usopp and Luffy occasionally broke off the path to chase after some bug. Brook started humming a song to entertain the crew.

Almost two hours passed before they finally came upon a large cave entrance.

"Is that it?" Usopp asked.

"Looks like it." Nami looked at the map.

"Finally! We're here!" Luffy ran up to the cave.

"How you feeling, Siria?" Sanji asked.

"Better. I can walk now, Master."

Sanji bent down, allowing her to slide off his back. He quickly turned to make sure she remained on her feet. Her legs remained steady. "Stay close to me. And let me know if you feel weak again."

"Yes, Master." Siria nodded.

"Hey, check these out." Usopp bent over something near the cave entrance.

"What is it?" Franky asked.

"Someone left a bunch of torches here." Usopp lifted one up.

"Why would someone put torches here?" Zoro asked.

"Well, it sounded like a lot of people come here," Nami said. "Maybe the town put them here."

"That doesn't make any sense," Franky said.

"They also had a map to this place," Brook added. "That really doesn't make sense either if you think about it. It's like they want people to come here."

"Maybe we shouldn't go in there." Chopper, still on Franky's shoulder, looked into the dark cave.

"What? No way. We came all this way." Nami grabbed one of the torches. She held it out to Franky. "Light it."

"If you say so." Franky drew in a breath. "Franky Fireball!"

Fire shot out of his mouth. The torch crackled to life.

Luffy grabbed one. He touched it to Nami's. It whooshed to life.

"Might as well carry one too." Usopp lit one.

"Let's go." Luffy walked inside of the cave.

Sanji tipped his cigarette downward. An unsettling feeling washed over him. He turned back to the forest. It was still quiet. A shadow moved between the trees. His eyebrows knitted.

"Master?" Siria called.

"Sorry. Just got distracted." Sanji walked over to the cave. He picked up a torch, lit it on Nami's, and led Siria inside. Dirt and moldy wood wrapped around them. The fire washed over the walls, showing the years of being scraped out and shaped and old rusted tracks lay on the floor. He took a closer look at the dirt walls and wondered how long it's been since this place was dug out exactly.

"Looks like this place use to be mined for gold." Franky rubbed his foot over the tracks.

"The wood looks really old," Robin said. "We should be careful to not make a lot of noise or else the cave will fall in on us."

"What?! Don't say things like that so casually!" Usopp said.

The cave rumbled. Dirt and small rocks fell from the ceiling.

"Will you keep it down?" Zoro asked.

"Sorry," Usopp whispered.

"Come on," Nami said walking farther into the cave. "The treasure has to be around here somewhere."

Several minutes passed as they walked farther into the cave. Occasionally a rat would scurry away from the invading light. Then they came to a fork. The left side was blocked with boards.

"Which way should we go?" Usopp asked.

"We go left." Luffy walked up to the boards.

"You sure? It's blocked off," Usopp said. "It's probably dangerous that way."

"It could be a trick. The treasure might be down that way," Nami said.

Luffy grabbed a board. It moaned then snapped when he pulled it out. He dropped it on the ground before pulling another one out.

Sanji's eyes drifted to Siria when he caught movement from the corner of this eye. She was rubbing her arms. "You cold?"  
"No, Master, I'm fine," Siria said.

Sanji eyed her arms. She let her hands dropped back to her sides. He decided to take her word for now but was going to keep checking on her.

"It's opened!"

Luffy's voice pulled Sanji's attention away from Siria. He watched as his friends proceeded down the tunnel before following them. Five minutes later they came to a sudden stop.

"What is this?" Nami moved her torch around to get a better look.

"It's a dead end," Robin said.

"I guess we should have gone down the other tunnel," Brook said.

Sanji's eyes dropped to the ground. His brow drew together when he noticed their firelight reflecting off something metal covered by dirt. "So that's it."

"What are you talking about?" Nami looked back at the cook.

"Back in town," Sanji said. "When we were shopping for Siria's swimming suits. I noticed that a guy watching us. He left the shop when I locked eyes with him. But something still didn't feel right. I also noticed that on our way out here the forest went silent."

"What are you getting at?" Zoro asked.

"We're being watched." Sanji kicked dirt away before lowering his torch. The dirt flew away, revealing more metal below them.

"What is that?" Chopper asked.

"I think it's safe to say we've been set us up." Sanji whipped around.

"You're very good at observing," a man said.

The pirates looked back the way they game. A group of men were standing there, blocking their only exit from the cave.

"What's going on? Who are you people?" Usopp asked.

"We're bounty hunters. My name is Blitz," Blitz said. "I'm the leader of this group of bounty hunters. When I saw you pirates come into the town I knew it was going to be an easy catch. You fell for the treasure here hook, line, and sinker."

"So the treasure is nothing but a hoax." Zoro pushed up his sword.

"That story has been around for years. No one has ever found it, if it's really here," Blitz said. "We decided to use it to lure pirates into our trap. That way we get more berries than some silly ol' treasure. And now that you guys fell for it all we have to do is knock you out and take you in."

"Well, I hate to tell you this but it's not going to be that easy." Zoro pulled out his swords. "You really shouldn't take us that lightly."

Luffy cracked his knuckles.

Blitz smiled. The rest of his men laughed.

"Uh." Usopp lifted his kabuto. "Do you guys get the feeling he knows something we don't?"

"You pirates," Blitz said. "You're so easily duped when treasure is dangled in your faces. You didn't even consider this could be a trap until it was too late."

"Shut up!" Nami twirled her baton.

Robin crossed her arms over her chest.  
A metal clank erupted through the cave. The pirates looked down. Dirt spilled through a crack in the floor. The ground below their feet shook before the metal opened, revealing a door. They fell through with startled gasps and screams.

"Siria!" Sanji grabbed her arm and pulled her to his chest while dropping the torch.

"What happened?!" Brook asked. "We're falling!"

"We really did walk into a trap!" Nami said.

"Everyone! Hold on! This landing is going to be rough!" Sanji said. His back slammed against metal. He grit his teeth. From the corner of his eye he saw his friends falling down other tubes. "Just great. We're being separated."

His friends disappeared from his view.

"What do we do?!" Chopper screamed.

"Chopper?" Sanji looked to the doctor.

"Sanji!" Chopper said.

"Just hold on! I'm sure we're going to reach the bottom soon!" Sanji said. His arms tightened around Siria. The torch fell passed them. "Try and grab the torch! We're going to need that!"

"Right!" Chopper reached out for the torch. His hooves wrapped around it before it got too far away. "I got it!"

"Master!" Siria said.

"It'll be okay," Sanji said.

"What do we do?!" Chopper asked.

Sanji gritted his teeth. He had no idea. To formulate any sort of plan he needed to know how far down the bottom was. Then it hit him. "Chopper, throw the torch!"

"What?" Chopper looked at him.

"If the torch lands before we do we should be able to notice how far down the ground is!" Sanji said.

"O-okay!" Chopper pulled back and launched the torch. "I hope it doesn't go out!"

"I hope that too." Sanji watched as the torch fell away from them then it went out. "Crap." Suddenly the light appeared again. It had landed. He reached for Chopper. "Grab on!"

"Okay!" Chopper grabbed Sanji's arm.

"Hold tight, you two!" Sanji kicked off the wall closest to him. He shot them across the tunnel. He kicked off that side. Repeating the same movement he lowered and slowed them down until he could land safely at the bottom. "That was way too close. Are you two all right?"

"Yes. I'll be fine." Chopper shivered. His hooves remained latched onto Sanji's arm for a few seconds before he loosened them and fell to the ground. "That was so scary."

"Siria?" Sanji cupped her face.

"I'm fine, Master." Siria looked up at him. "Only a little shaken."

Sanji scanned his eyes over her features. The firelight did very little to give him a good look at her but she appeared to be fine. He sighed with relief. "I'm a bit shaken myself."

"So where are we?" Chopper looked around.

"Farther in the cave most likely." Sanji took Siria's hands and stood up with her. "I didn't mention it earlier, but when we were walking in here I couldn't help but notice the cave walls."

"What about them?" Chopper asked.

"They looked to have been recently disturbed," Sanji said. "Sorry. I should have said something before. If I did we might not have ended up in this position."

"It's not your fault," Chopper said. "Luffy would have made us come in here anyway."

"You got a point." Sanji picked up the torch. Moving it around he tried to figure out where they were. The fire had dimmed a bit from the fall. "Looks like we're going to have to explore to find a way out of here."

"Do you think those bounty hunters will come after us?" Chopper asked.

"Without a doubt," Sanji said. "Now the only question is how are they going to do it? Do they have devil fruit powers? Are they going to use some form of machines?"

"I hope the others will be okay," Chopper said.

"I'm sure they'll be fine," Sanji said. He headed to his right. "Let's go this way. Maybe we'll run into the others at some point."

...

 **.X: I'll get her age in there within the next couple of chapters. I haven't really decided exactly how old she is but she's around the younger Straw Hats ages.**


	7. Weakness

Weakness

Sanji continued to lead his small group of three through the cave. A drop of water fell from the darkness above them. It landed on his cheek. "I hope there's not a river above us. It would be bad if the cave flooded."

Chopper sniffed the air. "I don't think so. Smells like its just condensation. So where do you think the other's ended up."

"It's hard to tell," Sanji said. "I just hope Luffy doesn't go insane and cause the cave to fall in on us." He paused. Moving the torch to the wall he studied it. "But then again… since those bounty hunters have being using this place they probable reinforced it rather well."

"Do you think they're watching us?" Chopper asked.

"Probably." Sanji continued walking. "Or they might have split us up in groups so they can takes us on easier. Well, easier than they think. I'm sure the others will win with no problems." He glanced at Siria. She continued to walk along side him, quiet as ever.

Suddenly something flew over them. The fire flickered against the gust of wind then steadied.

"What was that?" Chopper asked.

Sanji lifted the torch. The flame rose higher on the wall but gave no clue as to what flew over them. "Maybe just a bat. Caves are often filled with them. Let's keep moving."

Holding the torch out the small group continued to move around the cave. Sanji noticed the wall of the cave had a curve to it. They reached a tunnel. Pitch black spread out behind the light of the fire.

"Are we going down it?" Chopper asked.

"Let's continue walking around first," Sanji said. "There might be a clue or something around here." A few more feet and they found another tunnel, then another, and another. "It appears there are several tunnels down here. And from the curve of the all we're in a circular area."

"So what do we do? We can't go down all of them," Chopper said. "Which do we choose? If we choose wrong we could end up farther away from the others."

Sanji's eyes wandered to Siria. The girl was dutifully followed along right by his side. Then her squirrels came to mind. If she used them for surveillance she could help them out. "Hey, Siria."

"Yes, Master?" Siria lifted her eyes to him.

"Summon your squirrels and have them search for the others." They stopped walking.

"Oh yeah. I forgot she could do that," Chopper said. "She'll be able to find the others quickly!"

"Yes, Master." Siria looked to her shadows. Once more her shadow lifted up, the squirrels appeared.

"Hm?" Sanji took a closer look at the squirrels. Their color looked off in the firelight. They almost looked a bit transparent with ragged edges. Before he could question it the squirrels scampered away from the light. Their small heads poked into the darkness. Their bodies suddenly stopped moving. They slipped back into Siria's shadow.

"I'm sorry, Master." Siria lowered her head. Her hands trembled as she collapsed them in front of her. "It appears I can't do as you requested. Forgive me."

"Don't worry about it. We figured you had weaknesses." Sanji stroked her hair. She calmed to his touch. "Now we found one of them it's rather obvious. I can't believe I over looked it."

"What do you mean?" Chopper asked.

"I should have realized it before," Sanji said. "Siria uses shadows. It's only natural those shadows would disappear where there's no light."

"No light?" Chopper look to the darkness that surrounds them. "Oh, I get it. She can't use her shadow creatures in the darkness."

"I also noticed that the squirrels didn't look like they did before," Sanji said. "It looks as if they were almost transparent and had ragged edges. So I can only assume that the amount of light affects the shadow creatures. You never used your abilities in a cave before, have you?"

"No, Master, I have not," Siria said.

"We'll test my theory later," Sanji said. "Right now let's just pick a tunnel and go down it. We'll get no where standing here."

"So which one are we going down?" Chopper asked. "There're so many of them."

Something flew over them again. The fire flickered before the torch was ripped from Sanji's hand. The bark scrapped against his skin. The torch fell to the ground with a clank before rolling silent. "Just great."

"What was that?" Chopper asked.

"One of the bounty hunters most likely." Sanji shook out his hand.

"Very good."

"So the big boss man came to find us himself," Sanji said.

"You really are very observant," Blitz said.

"I'm surprised." Sanji closed his eyes. He had to figure out where Blitz was hiding. If he could pinpoint the man's voice he could attack. "I figured you'd want to go after our captain."

"I really couldn't care less who I went after," Blitz said.

Sanji looked up. _He's above us? How? Is there a room up there or something? Maybe a ledge he can stand on?_

"But after hearing you all about the girl's powers, I'm glad I came here."

Sanji cursed. He never thought of the enemy being close so quickly. And he certainly never meant to give away her possible weakness.

"I think I'll be taking her from here," Blitz said.

"Well, you're going to have to get past me first!" Sanji tensed. He expected a reply from Blitz but he was only met with silence. Suddenly something hard slammed into his face. His body flew backwards, colliding with the ground. Warm blood trickled down his nose. "What the heck?"

"What's wrong, pirate?" Blitz asked.

Sanji brushed the back of his sleeve over the blood. _Maybe he's swinging down from a rope or chain. No a chain would be too noisy. It must be a rope._

"I thought you said you were going to stop me." Blitz laughed.

"Get over here and I will! With pleasure!" Sanji snapped. "You could have seriously hurt my lovelies ladies with that stupid trap door." Silence greeted him. There was a whoosh before pain stung Sanji's cheek. Warm blood trickled down his skin again. "What the heck?"

"Sanji, what happened?" Chopper asked.

"He cut my cheek with something," Sanji said. "Siria, you should duck down. I don't want him hitting you."

"Yes, Master." Siria ducked to the ground.

Another whoosh came before something knocked into Sanji's head.

"How is he able to find us in all this darkness?" Sanji asked.

"I was wondering when one of your were going to ask that," Blitz said. His voice was still up above them. "I ate the bat bat devil fruit. I have the abilities of the bats. I can easily find you in the dark with my echolocation."

"So that's how you're doing it. You're transforming into a bat." Sanji took a puff of his cigarette. "Chopper?"  
"Yeah?" Chopper asked.

Sanji knelt down next to the reindeer. Lowering his voice he said, "I have an idea that might get us out of here."

"What is it?"

"I want you to sit on my shoulders. You have better senses than I do. I need you to sniff him and hear him out and tell me where he is," Sanji whispered.

"I get it. I'll do my best."

"Siria?" Sanji asked.

"Yes, Master?"

Sanji reached towards her voice. His hand touched her shoulder. His eyes dropped to the low glow of the torch. "I need you to stay put right here. Keep the torch right beside you so I know where you are."

"Yes, Master."

Sanji felt her nod through his touch. He hated to leave her here in the dark. The remaining glow of the torch was sure to go out any second. He would have to make this fight a quick one. He started to pull his hand away from her but stopped when he felt her shiver. "Are you cold?"  
"I am fine, Master," Siria said.

Sanji lowered his hand to her arm. Her skin was cold. He took off his coat and placed it on her shoulders. "Hold on to that. We'll be back soon." He turned to Chopper. Taking the small reindeer in his hands he placed him on his shoulders. "Ready?"

"I am." Chopper nodded. They waited for a few seconds before he leaned closer to Sanji's ear. "He's come down from above. To your left."

"Got it." Sanji listened to the whooshing. He held his ground until it got close enough. When it did he kicked out, landing his shoes on Blitz's chest.

Blitz gasped in the darkness.

"There you are!" Sanji lifted his foot again. He slammed it down on Blitz's head. The man slammed into the ground.

"What the heck?" Blitz asked. "How are you able to tell where I am?"  
Sanji slammed his foot down on Blitz again. "Well, you didn't notice we have an animal on our crew. An animal's senses are far greater than a human's."

"Way to go, Sanji!" Chopper said when Blitz didn't make another sound. "I think you've knocked him out."

"I hope so." Sanji picked Chopper up off his shoulders and placed him back down on the ground. He then stepped back over to Siria. "Siria, are you okay?"

"Yes, Master," Siria said.

Sanji picked up the torch and pulled his lighter from his pocket. A few strikes and the lighter light up. He pressed the flame to the torch, hoping it would light again. Fire flared up, washing over the cave walls and Blitz, who was indeed knocked out. "Good thing he was so weak."

"What are we going to do with him?" Chopper looked to the beaten man lying on the ground. All three of them eyed the man's body. The membrane of his wings were attached from his arms to his hips. On his head were two large bat ears. And a bat nose was settled onto his face made him look more like a pig than a bat.

"Bring him," Sanji said. "He's going to help us get out of here. I didn't hit him that hard so he should wake up in a few minutes."

"Right." Chopper nodded.

"Master, what is he?" Siria asked.

"He's just someone who at a zoan devil fruit," Sanji said.

"Zoan devil fruit," Siria said. "I believe I've heard my former master speak of those before. Though I have never seen one."

"They give a person animal abilities and features," Sanji said.

Blitz groaned.

Chopper changed into his human form. He helped Blitz to his feet when he started waking up, keeping the man's hands behind his back so he couldn't get away.

"Let go of me!" Blitz demanded.

"You are going to lead us out of here," Sanji said. He took Siria's hand and helped her stand up.

"And if I don't?" Blitz said.

Sanji grabbed Blitz by his shirt. "You'll get another beating."

Blitz shivered.

"Now get going." Sanji released him. He took Siria's hand in his again and followed Blitz as he gave them directions.

Several turns down different tunnels later the light glow of their flame gave way to the sun pouring in through a cave opening. They stepped out of the cave to find they were right back where they had started.

Robin, Usopp, and Nami turned to them.

"Robin! Nami! Usopp!" Chopper said with a smile. "You got out. Are you two okay?"

"We're fine," Usopp said. "How are you all?"  
"We're fine as well," Chopper said. "Sanji took care of this guy."

The women looked at Blitz.

"So he's a devil fruit user," Nami said.

"Did you two have to fight anyone with a devil fruit?" Sanji asked.

"No, we got lucky," Nami said. "The only guys we fought were normal."

"That's good. We had to fight together. We were trapped in total darkness for a while. I never would have been able to stop him without Chopper," Sanji said.

"Don't flatter me, stupid jerk! It won't work!" Chopper turned back to his normal form. His body wiggled at the comment Sanji gave him.

"I guess we just wait for the others to get back here," Nami said. Her eyes landed on Siria wearing Sanji's coat. "How are you doing, Siria?"

"I'm fine, Mistress Nami," Siria said. "Master Sanji gave him his coat to wear when I got cold."

"I can see that." Nami smiled. "I'm glad you're okay."

"I am glad you two are fine as well, Mistress Nami," Siria said. "May I inquire about the others?"

"Don't worry about them." Nami waved her hand. "They'll be here any second now."

The group waited. Birds chirped overhead. The wind ruffled the leaves for a few minutes before more of their crew finally appeared. Brook and Franky stepped out of the cave. Dried mud spotted their bodies and clothing.

Brook laughed upon seeing his friends. "You made it out. I'm so glad."

"Super." Franky shook out his hands. Mud flung from him, splatting on the ground. "We would have been here sooner but we have a little trouble with a devil fruit user. Man, I have a ton of mud stuck inside of me. It's going to take forever to get it all out. So how did you all do? You look fine to me."

"We are," Sanji said. "Just waiting for the rest of our crew."

"So Zoro and Luffy are the only ones left," Chopper said. "Is it a good idea to leave them in there by themselves?"

"I'm sure they're fine," Sanji said. "Though Zoro is probably lost again."

The crew sighed.

Suddenly the cave shuttered. With two screams Luffy and Zoro busted out of the top of the cave. They landed hard as fragments of the cave flew all over the place.

Sanji kick a rock away from Siria. "Watch it, you idiots! You could have hurt her!"

"Finally." Zoro put up his sword. "I thought I'd never get out of there."

Luffy dusted off his hat before putting it back on his head. "That was fun."

"You two." Nami huffed. "All that trouble and we didn't get a single speck of treasure. It's so disappointing."

"We might as well head back to the ship now that we're all here," Robin said.

With a quick nod of agreement the crew headed back through the forest, leaving their enemies behind to pick themselves up.

"Will they be all right in there, Master?" Siria looked back at the cave.

"Don't worry," Sanji said. "They got themselves into this mess. Besides the cave's not been damaged enough to fall in on them. When they wake up they'll pull themselves out."

"Yes, Master." Siria faced forward again.

"And maybe next time they'll think twice before tricking another pirate crew into going down there," Nami said.

They broke through the finally trees and stepped out of the forest. The ship rocked on the ocean, waiting patiently for them. After climbing aboard Sanji gave the crew a run down of what happened with Siria's abilities. They moved into the kitchen to test her abilities again.

"Go ahead." Sanji nodded to Siria. "Let's test them again in the low light of the ship."

"Yes, Master." Siria summoned her squirrels.

The crew watched as the squirrels morphed into lighter colors than they were before.

"So I was right," Sanji said. "Her shadow creatures are weaker in lower light. That's a good thing to know."

"We'll have to keep a close eye on her until she learns how to defend herself," Usopp said. "She'll also need to learn how to defend herself without her abilities. What should we teach her? Should we pick a weapon for her?"

"Good question." Sanji crossed his arms. "Well, we don't have to decide anything now. Together I'm sure we can teach her the basics of self defense."

"It'll be fine," Luffy said.

"So what are we going to do now?" Chopper asked.

"The sun's settling so we might as well stay the night here and head out in the morning." Nami looked at the log pose. "It's set."

They left the room.

"We can clean Siria's new clothes for now." Back out on the deck, Sanji gathered the scattered bags, pushing the clothes that had fallen out back inside. He placed them closer to the mast bench before disappearing into the storage room. Grabbing the tub, soap, and scrub board he headed back outside.

"Well, I'm going to try and get all this mud out of my body," Franky said heading up the stairs.

"Thank you, Master. Here is your coat." Siria handed over the black coat to him.

"Thanks." Sanji took it and tossed it onto the mast bench. He filled the tub with water then the soap. Rolling up his sleeves he started washing her clothes.

"Master, allow me to do that," Siria said.

"Don't worry about it." Sanji waved her off. "I don't mind. It won't take long anyway. Why don't you sit here with me? I could use to company."

"Yes, Master." Siria sat down beside him, folding her hands in her lap.

Sanji smiled at her before going back to cleaning her clothes.

Before long Brook pulled out his violin and entertained the crew with different songs.

While scrubbing her clothes Sanji continued to toss looks over at Siria. She kept her eyes down on the deck the whole time. Concern was clearly present in the young woman's eyes but he wasn't sure exactly what was the cause of it. It could be possible she was concerned about her weakness or because they were talking about her learning how to fight. Either way it was a new experience for her. He was going to have to talk about it with her in private. And the best place he knew to do that was in the kitchen or their shared bedroom. With the last clothing item washed, he placed it over the drying line. "There done. I'm going to get dinner started now. Siria, why don't you come help me?"

"Yes, Master." Siria stood up.

Sanji led her into the kitchen. Washing up he pulled out some vegetables and gave her the job of cutting them up while he readied the other food. "So how are you really feeling? You seem to be a confused and a bit nervous."

"I'm fine, Master," Siria said.

"Now, don't lie to me." Sanji smiled at her. "I can tell there's something on your mind. Go ahead and tell me. Are you worried about your weakness?"

"No, Master, not really," Siria said.

"Tell me," Sanji coaxed. "Is it about learning to fight?"  
Siria nodded. The knife clunked as it cut through the carrot she held down.

"I know it can be scary," Sanji said. "But you're going to be fine. I promise nothing is going to happen to you. We only want you to be able to defend yourself without your abilities if you ever find yourself away from us."

"My former master would never allow me out of his sight," Siria said.

"I can understand that," Sanji said. "But he's not a pirate. He had more control over his life than we do. Understand?"

"Yes, Master." Siria nodded.

Sanji scooped up his meat and dumped it into the pot. He took the cut up vegetables from Siria and put them in as well. Placing the lid on it he let it cook and turned to her. "How about we start right now since it's just the two of us?"

Siria's hands trembled. She collapsed them in front of her to make them stop.

"It's nothing series," Sanji said. "I'm only going to teach you how to throw a punch. Although…" His eyes drifted down to her hands. He took them in his. Her skin was soft and slightly cool still. "Maybe not. I don't want you to damage these precious hands of yours. Perhaps I should each you my way of fighting."

"Your way?" Siria blinked.

"I use my feet to fight," Sanji said. "Since I'm a cook I don't want to damage my hands."

"Oh," she said.

"The old geezer I use to work for taught me how to cook and fight," Sanji said.

"May I ask his name, Master?" Siria asked.

"Zeff," Sanji said. "He once was a pirate but had to give it up because he lost his leg when he…" He sighed.

"Master?"

"He ended up eating his own leg because we were stranded at sea," Sanji said. He pulled his hands from hers and slipped them into his pockets. "It was my fault it happened. I had fallen overboard because of a storm during the time when his crew attacked the ship I was on. He ended up saving me because we both had the same dream of finding the All Blue."

"All Blue?"

"It's a place where fish from all the seas come together." Sanji smiled. "I know it exists and I'm going to find it."

"So this Zeff is important to you?" Siria asked.

"He is." Sanji nodded. "He's basically my father."

"Do you have any siblings?" Siria asked.

Sanji flinched. His smile faded.

"I'm sorry, Master." Siria ducked her head. "I didn't mean to upset you."

"You didn't." Sanji placed his hand on her head. "It's a long story. One I may tell you some day but not right now."

Siria peaked up at him.

Sanji gave her a soft smile. "I'm not upset. I know you're just curious. I'm actually glad you asked. That's one step closer to you becoming your own person."

Siria's cheeks flushed.

"You're so cute when you blush." Sanji chuckled. "Now, hold up your arms like this." He pulled up his arms to his sides, guarding his face with his fists. "Make sure to keep your hands close to your face like this."

Siria copied him.

"Good." Sanji held up his hand. "Now hit my hand."

Siria hesitated.

"Go ahead. You won't hurt me." Sanji nodded.

Siria looked at his hand. She threw her fist out. It tapped against his palm.

"Not bad," Sanji said. "Try harder."

Siria threw another punch at him.

"Better. Again."

Siria pulled back. She threw her fist out again a little too hard this time. Her fist skimmed across the side of his hand. The sole of her shoe slipped on the floor causing her to fall towards him.

Sanji saw her body flying forward. He slipped his arm around her waist, keeping her from hitting the floor. "You okay?"

"Y-yes, Master."

"I think you threw your fist a little too hard with that one." Sanji sat her back up on her feet. "But you did a good job for your first time. We'll continue with this later. Okay?"

Siria nodded.

They turned their attention back to the food.

"Hey!" Luffy walked into the room, sniffing the spices in the air. "Is it done yet? That fighting made me hungry! And it smells so good in here."

"It's almost done," Sanji said. "You know I'll call when it's ready."

"But I want it now." Luffy sat down at the bar.

"Well, you'll have to wait," Sanji said.

"Fine." Luffy looked at Siria. "So are you a cook too?"

"No, Master Luffy," Siria said. "I know a little about cooking but I was never allowed to cook my former master's meals."

"Really? So you're not going to be a cook with Sanji?" Luffy blinked.

Siria looked over at Sanji.

Catching her confusion Sanji said, "She doesn't have to be a cook because she's spending time with me. I'm sure she'll develop her own interests that she'll be spending time doing."

"You should come fishing with me sometime," Luffy said. "It can be kind of boring at times but it's also fun."

"If that's what you wish, Master Luffy," Siria said.

"Aw, come on." Luffy dropped his chin on the counter. "Call me Luffy. Lu-ffy."

"Knock it off, Luffy. I already told you she needs time." Sanji stirred the stew. "Why don't you go bother someone else?"

"Nami already hit me for doing that," Luffy said.

"Well, I'm going to hit you too if you don't leave us alone," Sanji said.

"Is dinner almost ready?" Luffy asked.

Sanji sighed. "It'll be ready when it's ready."

"But I want it now!" Luffy whined.

Dropping the spoon Sanji walked over to Luffy. He grabbed his captain by the back of his shirt and tossed him outside. "And stay out until I call you!" He slammed the door shut and walked back over to the stove. Siria stood there, widened eyed. "Sorry about that. Sometimes you have to be rough with that idiot."

…

Siria wrapped her towel around her body. Her eyes were locked onto her hair in the mirror. It looked so different now being as short as it was. But it was also easier to manage. With as short as it was it only took a couple strokes of her hairbrush to get the tangles out. She wrung the remaining water out of her hair before brushing it out. Unwrapping the towel she finished drying off before pulling on her nightclothes. She eyed herself in the mirror again. The clothes were simple with light yellow flowers up and down the pant legs. One single flower was over her chest on the shirt. It cotton fabric brushed against her warm skin as she left the bathroom. Her eyes scanned the books in the library as she passed through it. Her feet paused. Shame washed over her when she couldn't understand what the words on the spines of the books read. Her former master never allowed her to read. It was one of many things he had forbidden her to do. Reading wasn't necessary for her to preform her jobs for him. Then an unexpected thought came to her mind. She wondered if she ever read any books what would she read.

The thought startled her. Her body jerked. Never before had she had such a thought. Or not that she could remember. There were vague thoughts of wanting to try things when she was a kid but they quickly faded away to memories of pain. Her fingers touched a burn mark on her arm. She remembered. Before when she had the desire to try something new her master would hurt her by burning her or shocking her with the cuffs that use to be on her.

She left the room.

Reaching the stairs she looked down. A few of the crew were still scattered on the deck. They were talking amongst themselves and had yet to notice her. Carefully she allowed her thoughts to wander. Sanji's words came back to her mind. He had told her she would be able to develop her own interests. Her body tensed in expectation to the pain that always came when her thoughts wandered like this. Nothing happened. She exhaled.

Sanji noticed her then. He turned his eyes to her and smiled. "Siria, you're done with your shower?"

"Y-yes, Master." Siria stepped down the stairs. A breeze rose off the ocean. Goosebumps pricked up on her skin from the cool touch. A tickle appeared in the back of her throat. Covering her mouth, she coughed it away. She wanted to go inside as quickly as she could. It was too cold out here.

"I guess we're going to turn in for the night." Sanji stood up.

"Good night, you two," Robin said.

"See you in the morning." Usopp waved.

"Good night, Master Usopp, Mistress Robin." Siria nodded. She waited patiently for Sanji to open the door and followed him inside. The warm air of the ship engulfed her. The tickled reappeared but not strong enough for her to cough it away. Stepping into their shared bedroom her eyes fell to the new bed. A sheet had been placed over it at some time. Two blankets had also been placed on the bed.

"Go ahead and climb into bed," Sanji said. "I don't mine which side you sleep on."

Siria stood there. She wasn't sure which side to sleep on. This would be the first time she had ever slept on a bed. She said, "I don't mind sleeping on the floor."

"Nonsense," Sanji said. "We're both mature enough to share a bed. And I want to make sure you're safe at night if you happen to…" He waved his hand, searching for the correct word to use. "…change again. Okay? No more sleeping on the floor for you. Understand?"

"Yes, Master." Siria still didn't move. She studied the bed.

"I'm going to go brush my teeth. I'll be right back." The door opened and closed.

Siria moved closer to the bed. Reaching out she touched the blanket. Her eyes bounced to each side of the bed while her mind wandered over the dark secret hidden inside of her. She swallowed. Her head pounded in sync with her heart. She wondered if she should tell her new masters and mistresses of the thing that lurked inside of her. Master Sanji already encountered the creature but he didn't know what it was. Though she wasn't sure exactly what it was either. Maybe her new masters and mistresses would know something about it. But was it worth telling them? What would they do to her if they knew? Would they change their minds about her? Would they treat her like her former master did? She had no way of knowing.

Footsteps coming closer to the room prompted her to climb onto the bed. She went right over to the wall and pulled her knees to her chest. The door open. Sanji walked in. "Decided to sleep by the wall, huh?"

"Yes, Master." Siria nodded. Though she didn't really decide it. Hearing him coming closer to the room propelled her to climb on the bed.

"That's fine." The lights went out.

Siria glanced at Sanji from the corner of her eyes when his weight lowered onto the bed. Through the small amount of light that remained in the room she watched him lie down.

"Something wrong?" he asked.

"No, Master." Siria slipped under her cover. Turning on her side, she faced the wall. "Nothing's wrong. Good night, Master."

"Good night, Siria."

...

 **Stopdropanroll: That would be cute. We'll just have to see what happens.**

 **.X: I love fluffy moments like that.**


	8. Monster

Monster

"Siria. Siria?"

Siria opened her eyes to the sound of Sanji calling her name. She blinked her eyes to push away the blurriness of sleep. With a struggle she pushed herself up. She sighed. Her body was heavy.

"Are you okay?" Sanji asked.

"I'm fine, Master." Siria rubbed her forehead. "I guess I didn't get much sleep last night."

"I would say so." Sanji watched her.

"What do you mean?" Siria asked.

"You were a bit restless last night."

"I apologize." Siria bowed her head.

"Don't. You did nothing wrong. We all have our nights when we can't sleep." Sanji reached out and placed his hand on her forehead. "You're a bit warm and flushed. I hope you aren't getting sick."

"No, Master, I don't believe I am. I'm fine. Really." Siria pushed her blanket off her then stood up from the bed.

"All right." Sanji continued to watch her carefully.

"Shall I get dressed now?" Siria asked.

"Sure. Go ahead. I'm going to head on up to the kitchen. You can join me later if you want." Sanji headed for the door.

"Yes, Master." Siria nodded. As he left the room she grabbed a change of clothes. She put them on, placed her nightclothes on the bed, and left the room. Usopp and Franky were the only ones on the deck when she stepped outside. She looked at them and shivered when a cool morning breeze blew over the ship.

"Good morning, Siria." Usopp smiled. "Did you sleep well?"  
"I slept all right, Master Usopp. Did you and Franky have any trouble on patrol last night?" Siria asked.

"Naw. It was rather boring," Usopp said. "I mean that as a good thing."

Siria nodded. When they said nothing else to her she stepped into the bathroom. Turning off the water to the sink she stared at herself in the mirror. Her cheeks were flushed. Her eyes appeared to be hollow from the lack of sleep before flashing a dark red. A sharp pain stabbed into her head. She winced. "No. Don't. You can't. It's not allowed."

Siria closed her eyes. Grabbing her head in her hands she took a slow deep breath. "Master will not like it. Go away."

She opened her eyes. They were back to normal. She sighed then left the bathroom. Glancing at the two on the deck she headed up the stairs to the kitchen. Something was already sizzling on the stove when she entered the room.

"Siria, sit down." Sanji nodded to the bar. "Since you're not feeling well this morning I want you to relax."

"Yes, Master." Siria nodded and sat down on a stool. She stared at the bar countertop, thinking about what happened down in the bathroom. Her eyes flickered up to Sanji's back. She knew he had seen _that_ twice before but also knew he didn't know how bad it actually was. Her pulse hammered under her skin. Her mouth went dry as she recalled the times before when she had used that form around her former master. "No. It will not happen again."

"What was that?" Sanji asked.

"Nothing, Master," Siria said. "I didn't mean to speak out loud. I suppose you are correct in me not feeling well."

"If you feel that bad you can go back to bed." Sanji turned to her.

"It's all right, Master." Siria shook her head. "I do not need to sleep. I only need more time to completely wake up."

"I can understand that. How about some coffee? It can help wake you up." Sanji smiled.

"Coffee?" Siria blinked.

"Sure. Give me just a minute."

Siria watched as Sanji danced around the kitchen. Within a few minutes he placed a cup of seeming black liquid in front of her.

"Go ahead and try it. But be careful. It's hot," Sanji said.

Siria blinked at the drink then looked up at him.

"Do you not know what coffee is?" Sanji asked.

"I'm sorry." Siria dropped her eyes to the countertop.

"It's all right. It's a drink that a lot of people drink to help them wake up," Sanji said. "Did your former master not drink it?"

"No." Siria shook his head. "Not that I am aware of."

"Why don't you try it? You might like it."

Siria looked at the mug. She wasn't so sure about it. Still she did as Sanji told her. She slipped her finger through the handle and lifted it to her face. The smell was strong. She blew on it then took a sip. Her nose wrinkled at the hot bitter taste that flooded in her mouth.

Sanji laughed. "Sorry. I guess I should have warned you that it was bitter." He reached for the sugar and poured it into her mug. "Try it again."

Siria hesitated for a second before pulling the mug back to her lips. She sipped it. Sweetness mixed in with the bitter taste making it more bearable to drink.

"So what do you think?" Sanji asked.

Siria shrugged. "I don't know."

"Well, there's plenty of time to try other drinks. We'll figure out what you like," Sanji said.

Siria took another sip. She wanted to believe him. She wanted to believe that things were going to change with her, but she couldn't fathom it happening. Then again things had already changed a lot. She had new owners, new clothes that fitted a girl's body, and a new home. Though this place didn't feel like a home. Thinking back neither did living with her former master. It made her wonder if she would ever actually have a real home and know what one felt like.

Breakfast came and went like it had before. As the crew sat and talked about several topics they felt like, Siria felt her body become heavier. She was starting to think that Sanji was right. Perhaps she really was getting sick. Her heart skipped a beat as her hands trembled on her lap. That really didn't need to happen. She couldn't allow it to happen. But she had no idea how to stop it from happening. All she could do was wait and hope nothing bad happened and that she didn't get sick.

"Siria, you okay? You don't look very well," Robin said.

"I'm all right, Mistress Robin," Siria said. "I just didn't get much sleep last night."

"Are you getting sick?" Chopper asked. "Maybe you should go lay down?"

"You do look a bit flushed," Brook said.

"Actually she looks a lot more flushed than she did when she got up," Sanji said.

"You should go lie down," Chopper said. "That cave we were in was damp and cold. Perhaps you're catching a cold from that."

Siria bit the inside of her cheek.

"You heard the doctor." Sanji stood up from the table. "You're going back to bed."

Siria opened her mouth then closed it as Sanji's hand went around her wrist. He pulled her from her seat and lifted her into his arm. Her body buckled into his hold. "M-Master…I don't-"

"No arguing." Sanji headed for the door. "We don't want you getting sick. So you're going back to bed. Don't worry. I'll keep an eye on you."

"Yes, Master." Siria clamped her mouth closed. There was no point in arguing, not that she would have. So she remained in his arms as he carried her back to their room. Once there he placed her on the bed and removed her shoes for her. Confusion swept through her. Never before has anyone carried her to bed or removed her shoes.

The bed sunk when Sanji sat down on the bed. "Sleep now."

Siria didn't want to. But her eyelids fell closed. Instantly she fell asleep.

…

 _Siria could feel its presences before she even opened her eyes. It was always there. She sighed._

 _"What is it, child?" it asked. "Is something wrong?"_

 _"Please don't do this." Siria opened her eyes. Darkness surrounded her like always._

 _"Now, don't start that again," it said._

 _"I…I beg you," Siria said._

 _"Oh?" The darkness shifted. It swirled around her skin, brushing against her like seaweed floating in a current. "You're begging me now? My, my, my. That is something new. Don't tell me you're starting to listen to that guy. Do you really think you're going to be free?"_

 _Siria gritted her teeth. She knew she would never be free. Not with this darkness inside of her. Yet she had begged it not to take her again._

 _"You are confused," it said. "That can't be good. You really are considering that guy's words."_

 _"I am not," Siria said. "I know it's not possible. Just, please, don't do this anymore. I can't take it. It hurts."_

 _The darkness sighed. "Poor, naïve, little child. I shall never stop."_

 _"What are you looking for?" Siria asked._

 _"I am looking for nothing. I have what I want," it said. "Well, for the most part."_

 _"What do you mean? Why don't you ever answer me?" Siria asked. It didn't answer. And though the darkness didn't have a face she could clearly feel it smiling at her. Then suddenly her energy drained. She slumped forward. It was taking control again. "No…please don't…"_

…

Sanji frowned as he watched Siria jerk her head from side to side. Reaching out he placed his hand on her forehead. She was hot. Sweat speckled her forehead. "She's got a fever."

"No," Siria whimpered. "Stop it. Don't…"

"Siria?" Sanji watched her, wondering if she was waking up or just talking in her sleep.

"Please…don't…"

"Is she dreaming of her former master?" Sanji asked himself. Movement drew his eyes down to the shadows. They shifted and twisted. His eyebrows narrowed. "Or is something else going on here? Is that shadow thing trying to take control again?"

Siria's breathing became labored. Her cheeks reddened more.

Sanji jumped to his feet. Whatever was happening he needed Chopper. He threw the door open, startling his crewmates. "Chopper!"

"What is it?" Chopper asked.

"Siria has a fever," Sanji said.

Chopper jumped up and ran for the bedroom.

Sanji closed the door behind him, cutting off the concerns of his crewmates' questions. Stepping back into the room he found Chopper was already checking her out. He stood back and waited patiently for the doctor to do his job. "What's wrong with her?"

"I'm not sure, but it feels like some of her organs are swollen." Chopper pressed his hooves to her stomach.

Siria whimpered.

Sanji's chest tightened. He knelt down to the bed and took Siria's hand in his. "Will she be all right?"

Chopper didn't answer.

"Chopper?"

"I need a blood sample. I'll be right back." Chopper left the room for a few minutes before returning with a needle in hoof.

Sanji laid Siria's arm back down on the bed.

Chopper inserted the needle. Blood poured into the needle's body. "You should get a cold cloth for her forehead. I'll let you know as soon as I find anything."

"Okay." Sanji left the room with Chopper. He rushed up to the kitchen while Chopper quickly told the rest of the crew what was going on before heading to his office. Grabbing a bowl he filled it with cool water, grabbed a rag, and returned to their shared room. He dipped the rag into the water, rung it out, and placed it on her forehead.

Siria relaxed a little.

"I hope that helps." Sanji sat back down on the bed. The minutes ticked by slowly while he waited for Chopper's return. Finally the doorknob turned and Chopper walked back in. With the confused look on the doctor's face he knew something was up. "What's wrong? Is it bad news?"

"I'm not really sure," Chopper said.

"What do you mean?" Sanji asked.

"When she first got here I did a thorough check up on her. Nothing abnormal showed up in her blood tests at all. Yet now her blood is showing she has a weak immune system," Chopper said. "She doesn't have enough infection-fighting proteins. I'll need to ask her to know for sure but she might have gotten sick a lot in the past. But if she does have a weak immune system it should have shown up in my first blood tests. I don't get it."

"Are you sure you ran the tests correctly?" Sanji asked.

"What?! Of course I'm sure! I'm a professional after all!" Chopper growled.

"Okay, okay." Sanji waved his hands in surrender. "I was just asking. Maybe it was my smoking or the cave that caused this."

"Maybe but I'm not so sure about that. It's not like she can just instantly develop a weak immune system." Chopper crossed his arms. "And I'm sure her former master wouldn't have anything to do with her if she was a weak child."

"Right." Sanji looked back down at Siria. "A weak immune system would make her a liability to him. I wonder if he gave her some kind of medication that could make her have a healthier immune system."

"There are treatments to help with week immune systems but they have to be given every week," Chopper said.

"Well, she's been with us for about that long," Sanji said. "Maybe the medication finally ran out of her system?"

Chopper hummed in thought. "We'll just have to ask her when she wakes up. How's her fever?"

Sanji pressed the back of his hand to her cheek. "It doesn't seem to have gone down yet."

"Let's give it a few more minutes," Chopper said. "And it would be best if you avoided smoking around her as much as possible."

"That won't do much good when the smoke gets on my clothes as well," Sanji said while he continued to watch Siria.

"What are you saying?" Chopper asked.

"I'll quit smoking," Sanji said.

"What?!" Chopper shrieked.

Siria whimpered and shifted in her sleep.

"It can't be that much of a surprise." Sanji rewet the rag and placed it back on her forehead. "I'll do it for her."

"That's a bit extreme, Sanji, even for you," Chopper said

"Not if it'll keep her healthy," Sanji said.

"I know that. But you've been smoking for a long time. It's not going to be easy to quit," Chopper said.

"I'll do it anyway," Sanji said. "I won't let her get sick again."

"That's not exactly something you can stop. If she's going to get sick then she's going to get sick," Chopper said. "Besides I already told you I'm not sure if she really does have a weak immune system. I need more of her medical history before I can really come to a conclusion to what's going on."

"Fine." Sanji nodded. "We'll wait and as-"

Shadows lifted off the floor. They wrapped around Siria's body.

"What…what is she doing?!" Chopper asked.

"Oh crap! It's happening again!" Sanji leapt off the bed before Siria's claws could slice him into pieces. "That shadow, or her shadow, is taking over her again."

"This is what happened the other night?!" Chopper asked.

"Yeah." Sanji nodded again. His eyes lifted when a single black wing unfurled behind her back. "Well, that's something new."

"Huh?"  
"She didn't have a wing before."

The wing flapped, lifting Siria into the air.

"What the heck?! How can she fly with only one wing?!" Chopper asked.

Siria's body wobbled on her single, unsteady wing. She flew towards the door and crashed into the wall.

"Well, I guess she can't fly very well with one wing," Sanji said.

"What's happening to her?" Chopper asked.

"I don't know." Sanji shook his head. _But if this keeps up who knows what she'll do to the crew and the ship. There's got to be some way to control this._

Siria pulled her hand back. Her nails extended to six inches long. She sliced the door then kicked it in.

"Is she trying to escape?" Chopper asked.

"I don't know but we can't let her!" Sanji bolted for her as she flew haphazardly out the door. "Siria! Stop!"

She didn't. She flew through the bar door that Chopper had apparently left open when he returned to the room.

Brook screamed at her unexpected appearance. "What is that?!"

"That's Siria!" Sanji said. "She's transformed again. Apparently."

"Wow! That's so cool!" Luffy said.

"It is not!" Usopp slapped his captain over the head. "What in the world is she?!"

"Amazing," Robin said thoughtfully. "I never knew someone could transform like this."

"What do we do?" Nami pulled out her baton. "Do we fight her?"

Siria sliced her claws at Franky.

"It doesn't look like we have much of a choice in the matter," Franky said while dodging her attack.

She rounded on Zoro just as he pulled a sword from his belt. She sliced at him. Her claws clanked against the blade.

"There's no way a person this thin can be this strong." Zoro struggled to push against her claws.

"Maybe her shadows give her more strength?" Usopp readied his kabuto.

Siria turned towards Usopp.

Usopp screamed, "No! Stay away from me!"

Siria lunged at him.

"Gum Gum Rope!" Luffy wrapped his arms around Siria, binding her.

"What the heck kind of an attack was that?!" Usopp said. "I mean thanks for saving me!"

Siria struggled against Luffy's hold. A hiss escaped her lips.

"Siria, please, stop," Sanji said. He carefully moved closer to his captain and new friend. "We're not going to hurt you. We're your friends."

Siria's dark eyes lifted to him. They stalked his every move.

"It's like she's moving like an animal," Chopper said.

"Is it possible she is one?" Nami said. "I mean this thing taking control of her?"

Chopper sniffed the air. "I don't smell another presence here."

Sanji stepped closer to her.

Siria turned her palms up then dug her long fingernails into Luffy's arms.

"Yeow!" Luffy's arms unwrapped around her.

Siria lunged at Sanji. She struck at him.

Sanji dodged, letting her fingernails hit the railing of the ship. The wood snapped and shattered under her strike.

"Hey! Watch it! We can't let her slice up the ship!" Franky said.

"I know!" Sanji twirled again. He gritted his teeth when Siria continued to slice at the ship.

"Is she trying to sink us?" Brook asked.

"Someone do something!" Nami shouted.

Sanji lunged for her. He wrapped his arms around her, pinning her arms to his side. Siria hissed. Her fingernails came up and jammed into his arms. He flicked at the sharp nails ripping through his skin.

"Sanji!" Chopper cried.

"I'm fine." Sanji tightened his hold on her as she thrashed against him when her attack didn't get him to release her. She knocked her head against his but he refused to let her go. Even when she flapped her wing he refused to release her. Her wing flapped harder. He expected to be lifted into the air but they remained on the deck. _Good. It doesn't look like she can lift us both with just one wing._

"Wait! No light is her weakness, right?" Usopp said. "So let's get her back into the ship!"

"That won't work on this form," Sanji said.

"What do you mean?" Usopp asked.

"When she did this on the ship it was night. The moon was shining but it wasn't a lot of light like the sun," Sanji said. "There's something different about this shadow manipulation than there is with her regular manipulation. We'd most likely need some sort of light bomb to push the entire shadow away at once."

"That's just great," Usopp said. "She's just one confusion after another one."

"It's okay, Siria." Sanji moved his lips to her ear. Without his hands he did his best to stroke her hair with his cheek. "Calm down. You're safe here. It's Sanji. You can hear me, can't you?"

Siria's struggling slowed.

"That's it," Sanji whispered. "That's my girl. Just relax. You're fine."

Siria exhaled. Her body went limp in his hold. The shadow retreated.

"Siria?" Sanji held her body up.

"What…?" Siria looked up. Her eyes landed on the damage she had done. She gasped and jerked out of the Sanji's hold. Her breathing increased at the sight of the pirates scared expressions. She backed up against the ship wall. Her body trembling she dropped down to the deck. She wrapped her arms around her knees and hid her face in them.

"Is it over?" Usopp asked. "Is she back to her normal self? Is she going to attack us again?"  
"That was crazy," Brook said.

"She seems to have gone back to normal." Robin lowered her arms to her sides.

"It could be a trick." Usopp watched her carefully, aiming his attack just in case. "We shouldn't trust her yet."

Siria jerked at his words.

"Will you shut up?" Sanji said. "You're only scaring her more with that kind of talk."

"Sorry," Usopp said. "She's just really scary."

Sanji took a deep breath. "Okay, everyone just calm down. I warned you about this before. There's no reason to freak out."

"No reason to freak out?!" Usopp said. "She transformed into something and just about ripped our ship apart! I say there's plenty to freak out about!"

"Will you stop shouting and give me a minute to talk to her about this?!" Sanji demanded. "Just go inside of the ship!"

"All right," Luffy said. "We'll leave this to you."

"What?! You can't be serious!" Usopp said.

"It'll be fine. If anyone's going to get anything out of her it'll be Sanji," Luffy said. "So let's just go inside of the ship for now and let him handle her."

"We'll wait in the Aquarium Room," Nami said.

"Let me dress your wounds first." Chopper rushed over to Sanji. "You're still bleeding.

Sanji nodded. He sat down on the deck and rolled up his sleeves. The rest of the crew went inside while Chopper bandaged up the cook. Sanji kept his eyes on Siria, thinking about what he was going to say to her.

"There. That should do it." Chopper put up his doctor equipment.

"Thanks, Chopper." Sanji flex his arms. The wounds were still stinging but it was nothing he couldn't handle. He watched as Chopper disappeared inside before turning his attention back to Siria. He waited a couple more minutes before walking over to her. Her body flinched when he sat down beside her. "Siria, listen to me. I know you didn't mean to hurt anyone. It's not your fault."

Siria tightened her arms around her body.

Sanji waited and watched her. Nearly an hour passed before she finally shifted.

"I…I don't know what it is."

Sanji barely heard her words. "What do you mean?"

"That thing." Siria lifted her eyes from her knees. "It's always been with me. Each time it came out before my former master would hurt me to get it to go away." Her fingers rubbed over her scar. "And each time it came out I was in some form of weakened state."

"Like when you're sleeping or sick? Or like back on that island when those men attacked you?"

Siria nodded. "That's one of the main reasons my former master used those cuffs."

"It was controlling you in more ways than one," Sanji said. "Do you get sick a lot?"

"I do," Siria said. "And each time that thing took me over. And each time my former master shocked me to get it to stop."

"Do you have any idea where this thing came from? Or your former master?"  
"I don't. Neither did he." Siria shook her head. "Well, as far as I know he didn't know anything. It watches me."

"What do you mean?" Sanji asked.

"I can see and feel it inside of me. It _is_ inside of me," Siria said. "It's always waiting to take control of me. Though I don't know why. It won't tell me anything."

"You mean it can talk?"

"It can. To me anyway," Siria said. "When it takes control…I'm not sure if it speaks to anyone." Tears gathered in her eyes. "I'm sorry, Master. Please, don't hate me. I don't mean to become a monster."

"I could never hate you. And you're not a monster so don't call yourself that. This is something that's out of your control. Like I already told you, we're your friends now. We're not ever going to turn away from or abandon you." Sanji placed his hand on her shoulder. "I promise you we'll help you. I'm sure we've made things better for you already. And things will keep getting better. I promise you they will. But you have to learn how to talk to us. We can't help you if you don't tell us what's going on in your mind."

"I'm not sure I can do that," Siria said. "Master never allowed me to do anything. I use to want to learn how to read and write. But any time I did that he would hurt me."

"I see. He never wanted you to learn anything since that would lead to you wondering why you would have to be his slave," Sanji said.

"That's why?" Siria looked up at him.  
"I believe so." Sanji nodded. "But look at you now. You've spoken freely with me. You know, deep down I think you're the type of person who is very sociable with others. I think he only beat you down so he could control you."

"But why?" Tears dripped from her eyes. "Why did he do all of that to me?"

"Some people are just mean, Siria." Sanji brushed her tears away. "He wanted things. And to get them he used you."

More tears pour down her cheeks.

Sanji could see it. Despite a lot of work still ahead of them a lot of the weight on her shoulders had been lifted from what she had told him.

"I'm sorry." Siria wiped her tears away but more replaced them. "I'm so sorry."

"It's okay." Sanji pulled her into his arms. As she buried her face in his chest he rubbed her back. "I'm right here." He continued to hold her until she was all cried out. "Feel better?"  
"A little." Siria nodded.

"By the way, how old are you?"  
"I think I'm seventeen," Siria said.

"You think?"

"My former master never celebrated my birthday. I don't even know when it is," Siria said. "But seven years ago he did say I had been with him for ten years."

"I see." Sanji ran his eyes over her body. "You do look to be about our age. Well, Luffy's age anyway." His eyes came to rest on her face. He could tell there was something she wanted to say to him but was still too submissive to do it. "It's okay, Siria. Just tell me what's on your mind right now."

The wind blew, teasing their hair. Siria licked her lips and swallowed.

Sanji watched as her lips parted and closed several times. He patiently waited.

"I'm…I'm scared," she whispered. "This thing inside of me. It scares me. Sometimes it feels as if it wants to kill me. I don't know what to do when I feel that way. My former master always called me a baby when I told him about it."

"Well, he's clearly an idiot. I'll never call you that. I can see you're scared. And you don't have to be. I promise I'll help you figure this thing out." Sanji slipped his arm around her shoulders and pulled her to his side. "None of this is your fault. And you don't have to be scared about that thing inside of you. I'm here to help you. If you ever feel like that things gets too much for you to handle just come to me. Promise you'll come and let me know about it."

Her eyes landed on the bandages around his arms. "I hurt you."

"Don't worry about it. It's nothing but a scratch." Sanji smiled. "So put it out of your mind. Now, will you try and be more open with us?"

Siria shifted against him. Her eyes turned up to him. And for the first time ever she looked him in the eyes. It was a timid glance. She locked eyes with him for a second before looking away then looking back at him. After several times of making eye contact with him she finally settled her eyes on his.

Sanji remained quiet. He waited and watched her, willing her to understand she didn't have to be scared. She didn't have to feel alone anymore.

She nodded slowly. "I…I will try, Master."

"Good. Now there's something I'd like you to do for me right now." Sanji pulled from her a bit. He smiled as she continued to watch him as if she looked away he would disappear. "I want you to say my name."

"Your name?"  
"That's right. I don't want you call me or anyone else master or mistress from this point on," Sanji said. "We're not your masters or mistresses. You'll never have them anymore. We're your _friends_ and crewmates. So say my name."

"But Mas-"

"No." Sanji placed his finger over her lips, silencing her. At that time he noticed she was still a bit feverish. "Sanji. Say it. Say my name."

Siria swallowed. Once again several minutes of silence passed between them.

Sanji could tell she was working her way through to saying his name. And it came. It was a soft whisper slipping past her lips, but she said it. She said his name.

"S…Sanji."

Sanji smiled. "Much better. Now I don't want to hear you calling me master ever again."

Siria nodded. "I'll try, Ma-Sanji."

"That's all I can ask for. I know it'll take time for you to get use to it," Sanji said.

"So what now?" Siria asked. She shivered when a breeze blew over them.

"Well, I should inform my crew of what happened between us, but I think I should get you back into bed," Sanji said. "You still have a bit of a fever. And I don't want that shadow monster thing to take over you again." He shifted his body and pulled her into his arms.

Siria sighed when he stood up. Her head laid on his shoulder as they entered the ship.

...

 **.X: Yeah, short quick fit. Fighting scenes are always hard. And dealing with some writer's block makes it even worse. I hope they're better in future chapters.**

 **Stopdropanroll: I hope it will be fun. I've been thinking about doing a Luffy/OC again but keeping them as friends since this OC will be a Fishman, well fish'girl'.**

 **Aphremis C: I hope to get more fluff in future chapters. And, yes, in the anime Zeff cuts off his leg when Sanji is drowning. But in the manga he cuts it off and eats it. Apparently cutting it off and eating it was too graphic for the anime. Why I don't know. You don't actually see him doing it.**


	9. Choices & Learning

Choices & Learning

Siria shifted before opening her eyes. Staring up at the ceiling she noticed the heaviness she had felt in her body before was gone. Placing her hand on her face she found her skin was cool. Her fever was gone as well.

"Looks like your fever finally broke." Sanji stepped into the room and closed the door. "How are you feeling?"  
"I'm okay." Siria sat up.

"I'd hope so." Sanji smiled. "You've been sleeping for a day and a half."

"What? I'm sorry. I didn't mean to." Siria's eyes widened. Her heart raced in her chest.

Sanji chuckled. "There's nothing to apologize for." He sat down on the bed and placed his hand on her forehead. "Yup. Back to normal. I'm glad. You needed the sleep. I think you've been wanting to tell someone about that thing inside of you for a long time."

Siria's eyebrows lifted. She had forgotten she had told him that. Her eyes fell to her blanket. It felt weird. Any time before when she had tried to tell anyone of the monster inside of her or that she was afraid she would have been hurt. But nothing happened this time. Sanji meant what he said. It was such a foreign concept to her.

"Oh, we're also starting you on making your own choices, training with a weapon, and teaching you how to read today." Sanji stepped halfway out the door. "So get dressed and meet me up in the kitchen. I have lunch for you."

She blinked at his hasty retreat. His words were a blur in her ears. Nonetheless she climbed off the bed and stepped over to the closet. She opened the doors and stared at her clothes. Her fingers twitched as her heart raced in her chest. Before Sanji had laid out her clothes for her. Now she had to choose what to wear. All on her own.

Licking her lips and found her throat dry. Hands trembling she reached into the closet. Her eyes snapped shut when a memory of being shocked flashed through her mind. Jerking, her hand knocked a coat hanger off the rod as she drew her arms to her chest. She waited for the pain to come, her body trembling. Nothing happened. She opened her eyes. The orange shirt she had knocked off fell onto a black pair of jeans. She grabbed them and put them on with her shoes. After dressing she went out onto the deck. Bright sunlight poured into her eyes. She shaded her face and waited for her eyes to adjust to the bright light. When it did she noticed only two of the pirates were on the deck.

"Hey, you're finally up," Usopp said with a smile. He was sitting on the deck with some long piece of metal in front of him. A hammer plus a few other tools were scattered on the deck with him too.

Siria watched him. He had freaked out when she attacked the other day. She was expecting him to do it again or something other than greet her with a smile. Nothing happened.

"How are you feeling?" Robin lowered her book from her face. Several other books were sprawled out on the table in front of her.

"I'm…all right." Siria stepped farther onto the deck.

"That's good. Sanji said your fever finally broke," Robin said.

"You do look a lot better," Usopp said.

Siria nodded. They weren't upset with her for what she had done. It was a bit surprising to her but then she remembered what Sanji had told her. None of them would be upset with her. When they said nothing else she stepped into the bathroom before heading up to the kitchen to meet with Sanji. She paused at the top of the stairs. Her eyes fell upon the railing where she knew the shadow monster had attacked but no signs of damage could be seen. It had been repaired during the time she was sleeping. Shaking her head she entered into the kitchen. Sanji, like always, was over at the stove. "Um, I'm here."

"So I see." Sanji looked at her. "And I see you were able to pick out an outfit. And such a cute outfit it is."

"Uh, not really, Ma-Sanji." Siria fiddled with her fingers. "I just kind of knocked the shirt down. It landed on these pants so I wore them."

"Well, it's still a choice you made," Sanji said. "I'm glad. Go ahead and sit at the bar."

Siria sat down. She blinked at the array of fruits and vegetables cut up and set out on the bar counter.

"On Chopper's orders I'm going to change your diet from the rest of the crew. So you're going to have to tell me what you like and don't like." Sanji flipped an egg onto a plate then placed it on the counter before Siria. "We need to try and strengthen your immune system to try and stop that thing from taking you over when you're sick." He hummed. "You know, we really should think of something to call that thing. It's getting annoying just calling it _that thing_ or _that monster_."

"You want to name it, Ma-uh-Sanji?" Siria asked.

"It would be better for quick references," Sanji said.

"I don't…know what to name it," Siria said.

"I figured as much. It can be hard to pick out names for someone or something in this case. There are so many names to choose from." Sanji poured her a glass of orange juice. "So I picked one out. From now on we'll call it Bran."

"Bran." Siria tasted the name. She found no feeling towards it one way or another.

"Go ahead and eat up. Robin is waiting for you," Sanji said.

"Mis-Robin?" Siria picked up her fork and cut off a piece of her egg.

"She's going to teach you how to read. And since we're going to have you start getting to know the crew better I figured it would be best to keep it one on one for now," Sanji said. "Robin is by far one of the calmest members of our group. She'll be the best to start with. Okay?"

"If you say so." Siria ate her egg. She thought back to the number of books in front of Robin. Before she had only seen Robin with one or two. Now it made sense why there were more. Without thinking she forked an orange piece of fruit off the plate and bit into it. It had a strange nutty sweetness that she had never tasted before. "What is this?"

"It's butternut squash." Sanji leaned against the counter top. "Do you like it?"

"I'm…not sure." Siria took another bite. As she chewed it she glanced up at Sanji. Something was missing from him but she couldn't place what it was. He still looked the same but he was different. After she finished up her meal she remained in her seat until Sanji had finished washing the dishes.

"Come on." Sanji lead her out of the kitchen.

Stepping back outside she found that Robin was now the only one on the deck. Siria wondered where the others were but she didn't ask. Sanji did say this was going to be one on one. So the others must be somewhere inside of the ship.

Sanji pulled a chair out from under the table. "Here you go."

Siria sat down and waited.

"So are you ready to start your lessons?" Robin lowered her book with a smile.

Siria looked at Sanji.

"Just relax." Sanji gave her an encouraging smile. "We'll start easy. Let's talk a little bit."

"Talk?" Siria asked. A small amount of relief washed over to when she realized that Sanji was staying with her despite saying this was suppose to be one on one.

"Ask us some questions," Robin said.

Siria sat fidgeting in her chair. She had no idea what to ask the two people before her.

"Why don't you start by asking us about things we like?" Sanji suggested.

"Oh, okay, um…" Siria looked between the two before letting her eyes rest on Sanji. "Uh…well, you like to, um, cook…" She shifted. This was far harder than she had expected. "I'm sorry."

"It was a good try." Sanji sat down in the third chair. He crossed his arms and legs. "I know. Ask Robin what she likes to do."

Siria looked at him before looking at Robin. "What do you like to do?"

"I like to study history," Robin said.

"History?" Siria asked.

"It's recorded events of things that have happened in the past," Robin explained.

Siria blinked. She had no idea what she was talking about.

"For an example I study the world history," Robin said. "It tells me what people did before we were even born."

Siria's eyebrows lifted. She wondered if it was really possible to know what things people had done before she was even born.

"I think you got her attention," Sanji said.

"I became an archeologist back on my home island of Ohara," Robin said. "My mother was an archeologist too. She had left when I was very young. I wanted to become one so I could join her on her journeys."

"You…you didn't grow up with your mother?" Siria found herself asking.

Robin didn't reply.

Siria ducked her head, clenching her hands in her lap. She shouldn't have asked that. "I'm sorry."

"It's okay, Siria. I'm not upset," Robin said. "And, no, I didn't grow up with my mother. She had taken off with several other archeologists when I was very young. She did return at one point." She looked at Sanji. "But I think that story would be better left for another time. For now let's just say she was killed because of some knowledge she had learned that she shouldn't have."

Sanji nodded in agreement.

Siria stared at her hands thinking about how Robin didn't know her mother either. Did that mean Robin didn't know her dad? Should she ask about him? Would Robin get upset about it?

"Do you have something to ask, Siria?" Sanji said.

She did. But still she couldn't bring herself to ask it. Her eyes fell on the cup and saucer on the table in front of the woman. "What are you drinking?"

"Tea. It's my favorite," Robin said.

Siria caught an exchange of smiles between the two pirates. She wondered if they knew that wasn't what she wanted to really ask. They didn't press her about it so she didn't worry anymore. Instead she looked around, trying to think of something to ask them. Her eyes then noticed Robin's outfit was purple. She remembered seen Robin in a lot of purple since having been on the ship. "So, um, you like the color purple?"

"I do." Robin nodded. "A good friend of mine use to wear it before he died."

"Oh." Siria's mind went blank after that. She couldn't think of anything else to ask them. A seagull cawed overhead.

"I think that's good enough for now. You did really well for your first time, Siria," Sanji said when a few minutes passed without more questions.

"Uh, thank you." Siria kept her eyes low. Her hands were still trembling but they had calmed down a bit.

"I think you should work on something that's a bit less stressful." Sanji nodded at Robin. "You ready?"

"I am." Robin nodded back.

Siria looked up when something slid over the table. A few sheets of paper and a pencil lay before her. On the top sheet were several lines and letters.

"We're going to start with the alphabet," Robin said. "I took the liberty of making work sheets for you."

"You…you did?" Siria asked.

"I did them when you were resting," Robin said. "Are you ready?"

Second thoughts about doing this ran through Siria's mind. They were soon followed by thoughts of her former master shocking her when she touched a book. She drew in a deep breath, reminding herself that she wasn't with him anymore and nothing bad happened when she, sort of, picked out her clothes earlier that day. "I…I am."

"Then let's get started," Robin said.

Siria hesitated but picked up the pencil. She waited as Robin gave her instructions on how to make the first letter.

"Follow these lines I have marked on the paper." Robin pointed at the first letter. Tiny arrows had been drawn on the outside of the letters indicating how to make the strokes.

Siria pressed the tip of the pencil to the paper. She had seen her former master and many others doing this part before. Though holding the pencil was awkward and she pressed a bit too hard. Her lines were thick and wobbly. Nothing like the smooth lines of Robin's work. She frowned.

"It's okay," Robin said. "Everyone's hand writing starts out sloppy. You'll get better with practice. Keep trying."

Siria put the lead of the pencil back to the paper and continued to follow the examples. Getting lost in her first lesson she never noticed when Sanji had gotten up from the table until he called for them.

"I think it's time to take a break," Sanji said.

Siria looked up. The rest of the crew had made their way back out onto the deck at some point. Luffy, Chopper, and Usopp were sitting on the railing with fishing poles in hand. Brook was playing a soft melody while Franky and Zoro were napping on the grass.

"I have tarts for everyone." Sanji passed out small plate to everyone. "Here you go, my sweet sunshine. I hope you like it."

"Uh, what is it?" Siria stared down at the bright yellow circle looking up at her.

"It's a lemon tart. It might be a bit tangy but it's really good," Sanji said. "Try it."

"Yeah! Sanji's food is always yummy!" Luffy said before eating his tart in one bite.

"Hey! You could at least taste it before swallowing it whole!" Usopp said.

"But it's so yummy!" Luffy smiled.

Siria picked up her fork. She cut a small piece off it and placed it in her mouth. Her nose curled. A small squeak escaped her lips. "It's sour."

"I'm starting to sense a trend here." Sanji chuckled as he sat down. "You don't seem to care much for sour and bitter things."

"I'm sorry." Siria placed her fork down on the table. "I know wasting food on the ocean is a bad thing."

"Don't worry. We all have our likes and dislikes. We're still finding yours," Sanji said. "Besides-" Luffy's hand suddenly appeared. It snatched the treat then retracted back to its owner. "With Luffy around no food will go uneaten here."

"As long as Luffy stays out of the kitchen you mean," Usopp said.

"Hey! I'm not that bad of a cook!" Luffy said.

"Yes, you are!" Usopp said. "And I was talking about how you would eat of out of house and home if we let you!"

"I am not! And I would not! Thanks for your tart, Siria! Take it back, Usopp!" Luffy demanded.

"I'm not taking back the truth!" Usopp said.

Chopper walked over to the table. "Sanji told me you were feeling better. If you start feeling bad again do tell me."

Siria nodded. She would do that. Hopefully if she felt sick again the doctor would be able to stop it before the shadow creature, or Bran, took over her again.

"Hey since you're taking a break," Usopp said walking over to them. "I have something to show you all." He disappeared into the ship before coming back with a long hammer in his hand.

"What is it?" Chopper asked.

"It's called a war hammer," Usopp said. "Or I based the design on one. This one's not as strong or as heavy as the original since I could only work with what I have. But it will do just fine. I modified it so Siria can fight long or short range combat with it."

"A war hammer?" Zoro, having woke up from his nap, lifted up on his arms.

"I put a lot of thought into it and even asked Sanji," Usopp said. "I think it'll suit her well."

"Really? How can she fight both long range and short range with a hammer?" Luffy asked.

"Well, the close range is of course the hammer itself." Usopp swung the hammer around. He then pressed a button. With a click the head of the hammer fell to the deck with a chain attached to it. "Inside there's a chain. Pressing this button here detaches the head of the hammer. She can swing it around and hit people at long distances."

"That's so cool!" Luffy exclaimed. "I want one! Make me one!"

"I know." Usopp stood proudly. "It's one of my finest achievements. So what do you think, Siria?"

"I, um…" Siria looked at Sanji. He smiled and nodded at her. Clearly he wasn't going to help much with this situation.

"It's okay if you don't know what to say," Usopp said. "This is new after all. And I'm not sure if it's possible but you might be able to work your shadow attacks with your hammer."

"You should try it!" Luffy said.

"Yeah! You should try it!" Chopper added.

"They're, um, excited?" Siria looked at Sanji again.

"Get use to it. These two are often impressed by a lot of things," Sanji said.

"I too am impressed with it," Brook said. "I have no idea you were so good at making weapons, Usopp."

"Yes, I am rather good," Usopp said. "I did own a weapons manufacturing plant back on my home island."

"Wow?! Really?!" Chopper's eyes shimmered.

"Why do you always believe his lies?" Zoro asked.

"He's lying?!" Chopper screamed.

Zoro sighed and laid back down with his hands behind his head.

"Why don't you check it out?" Usopp held out the war hammer to her.

"Uh." Siria glanced at Sanji.

"Might as well." Sanji shrugged.

"Okay." Siria took the warm hammer from him. Despite its long, slender handle it was heavy. Her arms dropped from the weight and it fell from her hands, landing on the deck with a hard thunk. Her heart skipped a beat. "I'm sorry."

"Don't worry about it. I should have known it still would be a bit heavy for you." Usopp picked it up.

"We're going to have to work on strengthening your muscles. Hey, mosshead, help train Siria," Sanji said.

"What?! Why me?!" Zoro demanded, sitting back up.

"You work out more than the rest of us do," Sanji said. "Training works better for most people if they work with someone."

"Then you teach her!" Zoro said.

"Shut up and do it. She needs to get to know you anyway. No better time than to do it than when you're working together," Sanji said.

"Fine," Zoro grumbled.

Siria looked at the swordsman. She wondered if training with him was a good idea.

"Don't let his rough appearance fool you, Siria," Sanji said. "He might be an idiot, but he can help you get stronger. And I'll be right there with you."

Siria nodded, reminding herself she could trust these people.

"Let's get started," Zoro said. "Do some push ups."

"Push ups?" Siria asked.

"She doesn't know what they are, idiot," Sanji said. "You have to break it down for her."

"Don't call me an idiot, you stupid pervert!"

Siria jumped.

"Stop yelling! You're scaring her!" Sanji snapped.

"You're yelling too!"

"Knock it off, both of you!" Nami said.

The boys stopped yelling.

"You two are giving me a headache." Nami rubbed her temples. "Just show her how to do a push up."

"Fine." Zoro switched his position.

Siria watched as he got on his hands and his toes. He lowered his chest to the deck then pushed up. He repeated this a couple times before looking at her.

"That's how you do push ups," Zoro said. "Now do it."

"You could be nicer," Sanji said.

"Shut up. Be glad I'm doing this at all." Zoro sat back on his heels.

Siria swallowed before getting down on the deck. She took Zoro's position and tried a push up. Her arms trembled under her weight.

"Take it easy, Siria," Chopper said. "Don't strain yourself. You might not be back to a hundred percent despite feeling better."

Siria got three pushups done before her arms collapsed underneath her. Her chest huffed up and down from the exertion.

"Maybe we should start off with something else," Zoro said. "Franky, think you can come up with some five pound weights?"

"Sure. It'll be super easy." Franky nodded.

"Good. Then we'll build up some muscles with those before going back to pushups," Zoro said.

Franky stood and entered into the ship.

"See? You know what you're doing after all," Sanji said.

"Shut up!" Zoro snapped.

A few minutes later Franky returned with two weights in his hands. "I hope this'll do fine. It's all I had."

Siria looked at the weights. It looked like Franky had melted several metal pieces together and melted onto two bars.

"It should do fine," Sanji said.

"Just pick them up and curl the weights to your shoulder," Zoro said. "Be sure to keep your elbows right next to your sides. Do eight curls for each arm."

Siria picked them up to find they weren't as heavy as the war hammer. In fact they weighed a lot less than the war hammer. Once she completed the sixteen curls Zoro had her do it a couple more times before having her lift the weights over her head for the same amount of time.

"So, um…" Siria looked around. The rest of the crew wasn't paying attention to them. Only Sanji was keeping a close eye on her and Zoro. When Sanji gave her an encouraging nod she knew he wanted her to talk to Zoro. So she tried. "You like the color green?"

"Huh? Yeah, I guess it's fine." Zoro shrugged.

"Because of your hair?"

"No. I don't wear green because of my hair. I don't really care what color of clothing I wear," Zoro said. "They're just clothes."

"So, you, um, been using swords for long?" she asked.

"I have been training to be a swordsman since I was a kid," Zoro said. "I want to be the strongest swordsman in the world."

Siria watched as his eyes lifted to the sky. An unfamiliar expression appeared in his eyes.

"A lot of my drive comes from an old friend," Zoro then said. "She was stronger than me, but believed she wasn't because she was a girl. We struck a deal that one of us would become the strongest swordsman in the world. Unfortunately, she died one day. Stupid idiot. She shouldn't have." He fingered one of his swords, a move Siria caught. "I carry her sword around with me. I will become the strongest swordsman ever."

Siria blinked. Both Robin and Zoro had lost someone. "So, uh, how exactly does a person become the best?"  
"There's one man I have to beat," Zoro said. "His name is Hawkeye Mihawk. I fought him before but wasn't strong enough."

Siria's anxiety rose. She didn't feel like asking anymore so she didn't.

…

"Okay," Sanji said fifteen minutes later. "That's enough for today."

Siria huffed from her work out. Her arms were weak from the weights. She barely managed to get the weights close enough to the floor to keep from doing damage to the ship again.

Zoro smiled. "I bet you didn't think it would be that hard."

"I…I'm not sure," Siria said through her huffing.

"A lot of people think that when they haven't worked out like this before," Zoro said. "True, five pounds isn't much at all. But when you're not use to working out this way that weight can seem like a lot once you've completed the exercise. We'll continue with this until you've gotten use to it. Then we'll add on more weight."

Siria nodded despite having the desire to never lift another weight again.

"You should sit down," Chopper said.

"Yeah." Siria stumbled back to her chair and sat down. Her arms fell limp in her lap.

"I'll make you something that'll help get your energy back," Sanji said before heading for the kitchen. It didn't take him long to come back. "Here you go."

Siria looked at the treat. Luckily it was some form of drink with a straw inside of it. She didn't have to use her hands. Leaning forward she took a sip of it. It was cool and refreshing with a light sweet taste to it. Halfway through it she finally got feeling back in her arms. She crossed them over the table, laid down on them, and fell asleep.

"Poor girl," Nami said. "We wore her out."

"We should probably move her inside before she catches a cold again," Chopper said. "The sun's going down."

"Right. I'll take her to our room." Sanji lifted her into his arms.

"Does this mean I get the rest of her treat?" Luffy asked.

"I can't believe you're even asking that," Nami said.

"Asking what?" Luffy asked while gulping down the liquid.

"Never mind." Nami sighed. "I should have known better."

Sanji chuckled at them before pushing the door open. He crossed the bar floor and entered into their room. Carefully he placed her on the bed, removed her shoes, and pulled her cover over her. He brushed her bangs out of the way before letting them fall back into place. "You did well today, Siria. I'm proud of you."

Sanji stayed with her for several minutes before leaving the room. Stepping back outside he pulled out a cigarette and lit it.

"Hey, that's the first time I've seen you light one of those up all day," Nami said. "What's up with that?"

"I'm trying to quit," Sanji said.

Everyone froze and stared at him.

Franky pushed up his sunglasses. "Did I hear that right?"

"Are you kidding?" Usopp asked.

"Nope. I'm not going to put Siria in any health danger," Sanji said.

"That's noble of you, but it's a tough job quitting smoking. And you've been doing it for years," Nami said.

"I know that," Sanji said. "But I'm going to do it anyway. Besides I only started to show Zeff that I wasn't a kid anymore."

"Poisoning your lungs to make a point," Zoro scoffed. "I'm sure that showed him."

"Just shut up!" Sanji snapped.

"You really care about her, don't you?" Brook said. "That's so sweet."

"I'm hungry," Luffy said.

"Way to ruin a tender moment, Luffy." Usopp shook his head.

"It's fine. It's time to start supper anyway." Sanji shoved his hands into his pockets and headed up the stairs. Stepping into the kitchen his mind started going over the days events and what he would cook. Siria had done better than he had expected. And the more he observed her the more he was convinced she was a sociable person. He smiled. He couldn't wait to see how she would be once she became completely open with them. "She's going to be amazing. I just know it."

…

"Sanji?" Chopper entered into the kitchen a while later.

"Yes?" Sanji flipped the fish he was cooking. They sizzled over the heat. Steam rose into the air.

"I was wondering if you wanted me to wake Siria up," Chopper said.

"No, that's okay. I'll make her and myself a plate and eat with her in our room," Sanji said. "She's worked hard today. She deserved to eat in bed."

"All right then." Chopper left the room.

"Done!" Sanji said when he had the tray set with their meals and a small vase with a couple flowers in it. Picking it up he headed outside. "Hey, everyone, supper's ready."

"Yes!" Luffy grabbed the railing and pulled himself up.

"You're not eating with us?" Nami asked making her way to the kitchen.

"I'm going to eat with Siria," Sanji said. "I'll be back later to do the dishes." He entered into their room. A smile spread across his lips when he found she was still sleeping. Part of him didn't want to wake her up but she needed to eat. And she would have a hard time sleeping later if she slept for very long right now. He sat the tray down on the nightstand then shook her shoulder. "Siria? Wake up."

"Hm?" Siria opened her eyes then sat up. "Oh, sorry. I fell asleep."

"It's fine. You worked hard today. You needed the rest." Sanji placed his and her pillows behind her then placed the tray on her lap. "I decided you should eat in bed." He picked up his plate with a bright smile. "Enjoy!"

"Thank you, M-Sanji." Siria picked up her fork and speared her fish.

"I wanted you to know that I'm proud of you. You did very well today," Sanji said.

"It was hard," Siria whispered.

"I know it was. It'll get easier."

"M-Sanji?" Siria asked.

"Hm?"

"Did you…" Siria licked her lips. "Have you lost someone to death?"

Sanji paused, his fork halfway to his mouth. He blinked at her. "Why would you ask something like that?"

"Uh, well, Zoro and Robin lost someone." Siria raked her peas around her plate. "I was just wondering if you all lost someone to death too."

Sanji hummed. "Well, I believe we all have at some point. Its just part of life."

Siria looked at him. "Who did you lose?"

Sanji flinched.

"I'm sorry. Should I have not asked that?" Siria ducked her head.

"No, it's okay. You're supposed to ask questions." Sanji lowered his fork to his plate.

Siria looked back up at him and waited.

"Well, the details are very complicated. You won't understand them so I won't get into them," Sanji said. "But my mother died when I was a kid."

"I'm sorry," Siria said.

"It's fine. That was a long time ago." Sanji shrugged. "It's not something I really care to talk about so don't mention it to the crew."

Siria nodded. "Okay. I wont."

…

Sanji sighed internally when Siria didn't ask any more questions. His plan to get her more open almost came back and bit him on the butt. But it also opened up a question he never entertained before. What was he going to tell Siria about his past? His family? His friends didn't even know everything about his past. Of course they never asked him about it and he never offered the whole truth to them. So of course he wasn't going to tell them about it. But what about Siria? She was different than they were. She would ask someday about his past. And when she did…would he tell her the truth?


	10. Men, Women, Babies, & Pirates

Men, Women, Babies, & Pirates

"So you were once a, um, real person with skin and organs and everything?" Siria asked. Self consciousness washed over her. She really had no idea how to form her question. It seemed that no matter how it was phrased it was going to be insulting. As she spoke she lifted her weights to her shoulders. "Sorry."

"Why, yes, I was. Or I did have skin and flesh and all that," Brook said unfazed by her question. "And it's all right. I would be sure how to ask a question like that either. It's been such a long time since I've had skin and stuff. I'm rather use to this form by now."

"Do you ever miss it?" she asked. Her question brought back the past week and a half that she had been training her body and her ability to be open with the crew. Each day she had spent with a single crewmember, asking them questions about them and their past. She was surprised to find with each passing day it was coming easier and easier for her to talk to them. Though she had moments like now when she wasn't sure of herself. And she still had moments of flinching in expectation of being shocked. It made her wonder if she would get use to this and never flinch again.

"I do occasionally miss having a real body. But this one does allow me to do things that I never could before." Brook pulled out a cloth from his pocket and started to wipe down his violin.

"Like what?" Siria eyed his bones.

"Like running on the water," Brook said. "Since I'm nothing but bones I'm very light."

"You can run on water? How is that possible when you're a devil fruit user?" Worry encased her. It showed her that she was growing fond of those around her. She didn't want anyone of them to get hurt. And the ocean could hurt devil fruit users. That was one of many lessons she had already had with Robin.

"I suppose it's because no water actually gets on me. It's only on the bottom of my shoes." Brook lifted a foot and shook it at her.

"I see. And you've always been a musician?" Her eyes fell upon the violin again.

"I have. I've been playing many instruments since I was a kid. The violin is my favorite out of them all." The sun shimmered on the violin's now glossy frame. "Do you have any interest in playing an instrument?"

"I don't know. I never really thought about it considering." Siria looked to the scars on her arms. "Though I do have memories of my former mistress playing an instrument called a harp. It made a very beautiful sound."

"Indeed." Brook nodded. "Harps are very beautiful. Would you like to learn how to play the violin?"

Siria started. She wasn't expecting him to ask her something like that.

"I could teach you. You might like it."

Siria started to glance around for Sanji but stopped herself. Making decisions was becoming easier for her. This was one she could make on her own. "And it's okay if I end up not liking it?"

"Of course it is." Brook laughed. "You're about to take a break anyway. Why don't I show you how to play a few notes?"

"Um. Sure." Siria nodded. Finishing her repetition she placed her weights down on the deck.

Brook brought the violin up to his chin and showed her how to hold it. "It can be a bit trick to hold at first. Just tuck it under your chin like this. Hold your other arm out like this, careful to not bump your hand against the violin."

Siria nodded.

"You try." Brook handed over the violin.

Siria found out really quick that he was right. Getting the correct hold on the violin was trick. A few minutes of practicing, and Brook helping her she finally got it.

"Very good. Now add pressure to the bow, but not too much, and pull it over the strings," Brook instructed.

Siria did. A rough, scratchy sound came from the violin. She cringed.

"Not a bad try. Though you put too much pressure on it. Try again," Brook said.

Siria gave it a few more tries before getting the correct smooth sound to come out of it. She exhaled; relieved she had finally done it. "That was hard."

"Indeed." Brook nodded. Next he showed her finger placements.

Siria spend about twenty minutes working on getting her fingers in the correct places. A few times she got the correct smooth note to sing from the instrument.

"Hey, hey." Zoro walked over to them. He wiped a towel over the sweat dripping down his cheek from his own training above them in the crow's nest. "You're supposed to be training."

"I'm sorry." Siria handed Brook his violin back. "I was. I only took a break for Brook to show me how to play his violin."

"It was my fault." Brook placed his boney hand to his chest. "Please, do not blame her."

"It's fine. Rest is a part of training too. All right then time to get back to work. "Let's work on the war hammer for a while." Zoro tilted his head to the war hammer lying on the deck.

"Okay." Siria nodded. She reached for her hammer. On Zoro's instructions she started swinging it as if she were trying to hammer in a nail. Fifteen swings in her muscles started tensing to pain and exhaustion. It made her wonder if she would ever get the hang of this thing.

"Relax your mind," Zoro said. "Don't think about what you haven't accomplished yet. It'll only make you tense up and make mistakes. This is a process. It's a slow one but you have improved."

"Right." Siria nodded. She thought about her progress until Luffy's voice broke through her concentration.

"So cool! It's another pirate ship!" Luffy said.

"Are they going to attack us?" Usopp ran up to the helm.

"It looks like they're having ship trouble." Franky looked through his binoculars.

"Is it possible it's a trick to get people to stop?" Chopper asked.

"I doubt it," Franky said. "There's a large hole in the side of the ship. And there's wood fragments floating in the water."

"What about the navy?" Chopper asked. "Were they attacked?"

"If the navy attacked them they wouldn't have just left the pirates behind," Nami said.

"Good point." Chopper nodded.

"Let's see if they need help! Usopp, pull us over to the island!" Luffy yelled.

"We're going to stop?" Siria asked. "Is that safe?"

"That's Luffy for you." Sanji walked over to them. "Whether it's safe for not depends on who the pirates are."

"I don't recognize the Jolly Roger." Nami picked up her own binoculars and looked through it. "It looks like a silver hawk."

"I've never heard of them either," Zoro said.

"And a couple of the pirates are waving to us. It looks like they want us to come over," Nami said.

"Do you think we really should?" Chopper asked.

"They might want to kill us," Robin said.

"Don't talk like that!" Usopp said.

"Come on! Let's check it out!" Luffy said.

"Aye, Captain!" Usopp grabbed the helm with a sigh. The ship turned and headed for the small island the ship was docked at.

Siria stepped closer to Sanji.

"It's fine. Just relax," Sanji told her. "We won't let anything happen to you."

Siria nodded. She stayed close to him as the ship slowed to a stop.

"Hey!" Luffy called out. "You okay!"

"Yeah," a young man called back. "I'm glad you guys stopped. I wasn't sure you were going to since we're pirates too."

"Looks like you've got a problem with your ship." Franky eyed the damage.

"Yeah. There's a sea king near by," the man said. "He-"

Before the man could finish a large wave rocked the ship. A sea king cow lifted from the ocean with a roar.

"Oh," Sanji said. "It's a sea cow."

"So huge! Let's eat it!" Luffy said.

"That's the one who rammed us," the man said. "We're lucky it didn't-"

"Gum Gum Rocket!" Luffy shot himself into the air. "Gum Gum Pistol!"

The jaws of the pirates on the ground dropped open when the sea cow dropped to the water. "He killed the thing with one hit?!"

"Guess we're having sea cow for dinner," Sanji said.

Siria blinked. "Luffy's really strong, isn't he?"  
"Yeah." Sanji nodded.

Luffy stood on the body of the sea cow. He waved and laughed. "Hey! Sanji! I got dinner!"

"I noticed!" Sanji called back.

…

Siria sat near the fire that the other crew had going. The wood snapped and crackled under the hot blaze. Sanji was working on preparing the sea cow while the other pirates told them how they ended up here.

"And we pulled to this island," Raney, the captain of the other ship and the one who spoke first to them, said. "I'm surprised we didn't sink out there. We were lucky to be close enough to the island."

"You were lucky." Franky walked back up to them from checking out the damaged ship. "The whole is huge. And from the size of the sea cow I'm surprised you didn't sink."

"We managed to avoid a head on collision," Raney said. "I think that's why we survived."

"Well, thanks for warning us about it," Nami said.

"Sure thing. Though with how your captain handled it our warning was unnecessary." Raney chuckled.

"No worries." Luffy laughed. "Now we have a great meal! And Franky can fix your ship!"

"No, that's not necessary." Raney waved his hands.

"Why not? Do you have a shipwright of your own?" Luffy asked.

"Well, we did," Raney said. "But he was killed in our last fight with the navy. We were going to look for another once we got to the next island."

"You'll be stranded out here," Usopp said. "You need your ship fixed."

"Franky can fix it. Right?" Luffy looked at Franky.

"Sure thing. I'll fix it up super good." Franky nodded.

Siria looked between the pirates. They were supposed to be enemies but Luffy was going to let his own shipwright help this enemy crew. "I don't understand."

"What's that?" Sanji asked.

"Why is the captain letting Franky fix the ship? They're opposing pirate crews," Siria said.

"That's true. But it doesn't really mean we're enemies," Sanji said. "We have friends all over the place. Some are even pirates that we were enemies with. This is nothing new."

"Oh." Siria continued to watch the event unfold in front of her. When Raney caught her gaze he smiled. She lowered her gaze from his. Before long the mix of hammers and sizzling sea cow meat mingled in with the chatter of the two pirate crews. Movement caught from the corner of her eyes caused her to look up. Raney had moved closer to her.

"Hey. You seem rather quiet," Raney said. "Very different from the majority of your crew."

"Oh, um, yeah." Siria nodded.

"So what's your name? I don't believe I caught it." Raney smiled.

"Siria." Siria glanced at Sanji. He was watching them closely.

"Siria? That's a pretty name," Raney said.

"Sanji gave it to me," Siria said.

"Huh?" Raney's eyes filled with confusion.

"Her former name didn't suit her," Sanji said. "So I changed it."

"That's odd. It's not normal for crewmates to change someone's name," Raney said. "Why did you-"

"Sea cow's ready!" Sanji cut the man off.

"Yeah!" Luffy cheered. The two crews immediately lined up to get their meals.

"Here you go." Sanji made Siria a plate and handed it to her.

"Thank you, Sanji." Siria took it.

"Looks like you get special treatment from the cook," Raney said.

"Special treatment? No. Not really." Siria looked back at Sanji.

"I give all ladies special treatment since I was born to serve them." Sanji handed Robin and Nami their plates. They said their thanks. "Eat in good health, my lovely ladies!"

They ate. Luffy of course ate the most of the sea cow.

Siria remained near the fire while Sanji washed the dishes. Flicking her eyes to her left she found that Raney was watching her. An uneasy feeling settled into her chest. To push it aside she started asking questions, "So why did you decide to become a pirate?"

"I like adventure. And nothing spells adventure like being a pirate," Raney said. "How about you?"  
Siria opened her mouth to answer him. She was going to tell him the truth but something inside of her screamed at her to keep it quiet. "I kind of fell into it by accident."

"Are you saying you don't have bonds to your crew?" Raney's eyes shimmered.

"Bonds?" Siria asked.

"Have you officially joined the Straw Hat crew?"

Siria stared at him. She wasn't sure. All she knew was they were her friends. Her eyes drifted to the Straw Hat pirates. Was she officially a pirate of the Straw Hat crew? She had called Luffy the captain but did that really mean she was a crewmate? Did the crew calling her their friend and crewmate really make her one of the crew? She wasn't sure. She never put much thought into being a pirate. She did, after all, fall into the life by accident.

"You know." Raney slid closer to her.

Siria tensed at his closeness. Her eyes fell to the ground when she saw movement. His hand was only a couple inches from her thigh. She wondered why he placed it there when his other hand was on his lap.

"If you wanted you could join my crew," Raney said.

"Join your crew?" Siria looked at his face. Something odd was in his eyes. Something she couldn't place.

"Yeah." Raney nodded.

Her eyes dropped back down to his hand when it moved again. His finger lifted up and brushed against her leg. Uncomfortableness tightened in her chest. "Don't do that."

"Don't do what?" Raney asked.

"Don't touch me. I don't like it." Siria shifted away from him.

"Come on. It wasn't that bad, was it?" Raney followed her. "I'm only trying to-" Before his could finish a black blur shot between them. He blinked to find it was a leg. "What the heck?"

Sanji grabbed the front of Raney's shirt. "Don't you ever touch her again!"

"Calm down," Raney said. "I was only trying to-"

"I know exactly what you were trying to do." Sanji eyes burned with rage. "And if you ever come close to touching her again you will suffer a painful beating. I will break every bone in your body."

"Sanji?" Siria asked.

Sanji shoved Raney down to the ground. Without a word he pulled Siria into his arms and dashed for the ship. With a single jump he landed on the deck.

Siria could feel his muscle tense from beneath their clothes. "Sanji? Why did you bring me to the ship?"

"Because it's my job as your big brother to keep you safe from the sleazy men who wish to taint your virtue," Sanji said, all but growled.

Siria studied the fire in his eyes. "Taint your virtue? What do you mean by that?"

Sanji closed his eyes and drew in a breath. He slowly let it out while placing her on her feet. For a moment he stared into her eyes then said, "You don't know about men and women do you?"

"Well, I know they're different from each other," Siria said. Her eyes looked from his flat chest to her rounded one. "I can see that."

"Let me put it another way." Sanji shoved his hands into his pockets. "Did your former master ever tell you where babies came from?"

"Babies? No." Siria shook her head. "He only told me to never let a boy touch me. I guess he meant like Raney did down on the island. It didn't feel right."

"I see. That's good. And you were right to move away from him." Sanji tapped the toe of his shoe on the deck. _This is just great. Should I explain the difference to her or should I let Robin or Nami handle that?_

"Is something wrong?" Siria tilted her head. "You're upset."

"I am because of how that jerk treated you," Sanji said. "No man should ever touch you like that. Not unless you want him to." He sighed. He should tell her now since they were around other men who clearly wanted to get close to her. And there would be more men to come. "We need to have a talk."

"About what?" Siria asked.

"About men and women. Let's go to the infirmary so we can have some privacy."

Siria followed him to the infirmary.

Sanji turned on the light then grabbed a book from the bookshelf and sat down in Chopper's chair. He waved to the bed. "Sit."

Siria sat down on the bed, hands placed on her lap.

"Okay. Here goes." Sanji flipped open the book to a diagram of a man and a woman's body. He showed it to her, letting her take in the differences of their bodies. When she looked up at him he then started to explain to her the difference between a man and a woman and where babies came from. He made sure to emphasis to never let a man touch her unless she wanted it to happen. After he was done he sat back and watched her absorb the information he gave her.

"Oh. I see. Making a baby doesn't sound like much fun," Siria said.

"I assure you it is," Sanji said. "It will be intimidating at first, mostly for the woman since their first time can hurt."

Siria nodded. "You mentioned that during the lesson. But the pain doesn't last long."

"For some. It varies from woman to woman," Sanji said.

"So is that why you act so goofy towards Robin and Nami? You want to have sex with them?" Siria asked.

Sanji chuckled. "While I do love them I don't want to have sex with them. I will always love and respect women. But I will never treat one like Raney did. It's wrong what he did. I'd prefer if you stayed away from him."

Siria nodded. "I understand. I do have a question though. It's kind of about you."

"What is it?"

"Are you going to act that way around all the guys who talk to me?"

"Only if they try to touch you inappropriately," Sanji said. "I'm also going to tell the crew what he tried to do. So they'll keep an eye on you too if at some point we're not together."

"Thank you, Sanji," Siria said. "I know I cause problems for you but I'm thankful you're teaching me this stuff."

"Don't think anything of it." Sanji patted her head. "I care about you. I'm going to make sure you're fix to handle the world."

Siria smiled. Her smile quickly faded when Raney's words about her being a Straw Hat pirate came back to her. "Am I really a Straw Hat pirate?"  
"Hm? Of course you are. Why do you ask?"

"It was something Raney said. I think he wanted me to join his crew because he thought I wasn't a real member of this crew," Siria said.

"Do you think you're not a real member of our crew?" Sanji tilted his head.

"I'm not sure. I'm still new to all of this. And I never really said I would join. I literally fell into all of this," Siria said. "And I have no reason to become a pirate. You all had reasons for becoming pirates. And you have something to offer the crew."

"Well, you don't necessarily have to have a reason to become a pirate," Sanji said. "While I want to find the All Blue I didn't plan on becoming a pirate to do it. Nami never had any intentions to become a pirate. You know…not many of our crew actually had plans to become pirates here. Most of us fell into it as well."

"Still you all have some goal you're reaching for." Siria rubbed her arm. "I don't. I have no reason, really, for sailing on a pirate ship. Or any ship for that matter."

"Are you saying you want to leave the crew?" Sanji's heart sank a little. He didn't want her to leave. But if she really wanted to he wasn't sure he could stop her. Though he didn't really believe she would leave. She had nowhere to go. She was still learning about herself and the world.

Siria glanced up at Sanji. His voice was sad. His eyes had lost their normal shine. She shook her head. "No! I don't want to leave you. I know I'm still getting to know you all but I know I want to stay with you."

Sanji smiled. Some of the light came back to his eyes. His heart warmed.

"I guess I'm just confused. I don't know anything about myself," Siria said.

"Well, someone's got to know something about you," Sanji said. "And if you want to find out about yourself then you need to find those people. You can do that by sailing the ocean with us."

"And you think I'll find something about myself?" Siria asked. Her heart started to race. It was a scary thought but she did want to know about herself.

"Well, I have to be honest and say there's also a chance we won't find anyone who can tell us where you came from," Sanji said.

Siria sighed. Her hopes dwindled. His hand reached over and rested on hers.

"But I promise I will do everything I can to help you search," Sanji said. "The world is big. Surely someone we meet will have heard of your powers."

Siria nodded, covering his hand with hers. "Thank you, Sanji."

"Any time," Sanji said. "And don't you dare think you're not a part of our crew. You are. And you always will be."

"Right." Siria nodded. "Thank you, Sanji."

"Anytime. Feel like going back to the island now?" Sanji asked.

"I guess so."

"Don't worry about Raney. I'll keep myself between you and him," Sanji said.

"Okay. Let's go back outside."

The two stood and left the room. Sanji picked her up once they got on the deck. He jumped back down to the island and walked her over to the fire. They sat down together and listened to the others chat. Sanji glared at Raney each time he looked in their direction. And when he got a chance Sanji told his crew about what Raney tried to do. Since then they all watched the man closely, all but for Luffy who didn't understand the exact meaning of Raney's trying to touch Siria. The naïve captain thought they were becoming friends.

A cool wind blew. Siria shivered and shifted closer to Sanji.

"I should take you back to the ship," Sanji said. "It's too cool out here for you to sleep tonight."

"Okay." Siria nodded. For the third time that day Sanji lifted her into his arms and carried her to the ship. They stayed there until the next morning. She yawned and sat up.

"How you feeling?" Sanji asked.

"Okay." Siria rubbed the sleep out of her eyes.

"Good to hear it," Sanji said. "Breakfast is ready."

"I'll be there soon." Siria climbed off the bed while he left the room. She dressed then made her way to the kitchen. The ship was empty which told her the others were still on the island. She entered into the kitchen. "The other's not going to come up here?"

"Raney's cook decided to cook breakfast for the crews this morning," Sanji said. "Since you're on a special diet I made our breakfast."

"Oh, thank you." Siria sat down at the table. "It's nice of you to go through such trouble. And I'm sorry."

Sanji chuckled. "You apologize way too much."

"I'm sorry." Siria locked eyes with Sanji for a moment before smiling.

Sanji sat out their breakfast. They ate in quiet. It was odd. Both were use to the noises of their crew. But Siria found it pleasant eating with just Sanji.

After cleaning up from breakfast they headed back outside. Both stood at the railing. Sanji said, "Hey, how's it going?"  
Usopp looked up. "Franky's about done fixing the ship. Nami wants to get going as soon as it's done."

"All right." Sanji nodded.

Siria stood on the Sunny with Sanji. She watched as the crew scurried about the island before looking over at Franky. They were close enough she was able to watch him work on the ship. It was strange how easily he was able to fix the whole. Second by second the large hole closed up. Then the shipwright was done.

"Ow! Super!" Franky said.

"Thanks a lot." Raney shook the man's hand. "We own you one."

"No problem, brother." Franky grinned.

"Get ready, boys! We're shipping out for the next island!" Raney called. His crew cheered.

"So you're not heading to the New World then?" Luffy asked.

"Afraid not," Raney said. "It's obvious after that last attack that we're nowhere near strong enough to handle the New World. We need to be able to handle sea kings better than we did. Plus, we need to find a new shipwright before we do anything else. But maybe one day we can meet again in the New World. We're still planning on going there. We're pirates after all. When we meet again we'll be sure to repay your kindness."

"Sure!" Luffy smiled. "That'll be great!"

Raney looked up at Siria.

Siria flinched. The man looked like he wanted to say something to her. She felt Sanji's presence move closer to her. Looking up at him she found him glaring down at Raney. Before she knew it the rest of the crew was on the Sunny and they were pulling away from the island. Relief washed through her now that they were moving away from Raney.

"Well, that was an interesting stop." Zoro sat down and leaned against the railing.

"He's lucky I didn't kill him," Sanji grumbled.

"At least we're back on track." Nami sat down at the table. "I'm ready to get to Fishman Island."

"Well, since we're sailing again do you want to continue with your lessons?" Robin asked.

"Sure." Siria nodded. She walked over to the table and sat down.

Robin pulled out her books and started Siria's lesson on math. She was working on her multiplication tables now. They were a bit harder than just adding and subtracting numbers. And each time she came upon a harder one she tapped her pencil on the table and studied the problem. The tapping stopped when the answer finally came to her mind. She scribbled it down.

"Hey! Siria! Why don't you take a break?" Sanji called.

"Huh?" Siria lifted up from papers. She found it was only herself and Robin on the deck now. It made her wonder how long she had been working. "Where'd everyone go?"  
Robin only smiled in reply.

"I've made some snacks. So come on up to the kitchen."

Siria turned just in time to see Sanji disappear back into the kitchen. For some reason he closed the door part way. "Why did he close the door like that?"

"Let's go." Robin stood and headed for the stairs.

Confused, Siria followed her. She became even more confused when Robin paused at the kitchen door.

"Why don't you go in first?" she said.

"Um. Okay." Siria gave her a confused look before entering into the kitchen.

"Surprise!"

Siria jumped when everyone screamed at her. Pieces of colorful paper were thrown into the air. They littered down on to her shoulders, hair, and clothes. She blinked. Several types of food, including a cake in the center, were spread out on the table. "Uh…Sanji?" She looked to him. He was smiling just as brightly as everyone else. "What's going on?"

"I told the crew how you were feeling about your uncertainty on being on our crew," Sanji said.

"Oh."

"We decided to throw you a welcome party," Usopp said.

"But first Luffy has a question for you," Chopper said.

"A question?" Siria's eyes drew to the captain of the crew.

"I want your answer to whether or not you'll join my crew." Luffy grinned.

Siria looked at Sanji. His smile grew. His eyes sparkled in anticipation to her answer.

"So what do you say?" Chopper said. "Will you officially join us?"

Tears came to her eyes as a smile pulled over her lips. She nodded. "I will. I know I still have a lot to learn but I want to do it with you all. I want to be part of your crew."

"Yeah!" Luffy cheered. "We have another crewmate!"

The crew cheered and clapped.

Robin guided Siria to the table.

Sanji cut her a piece of cake.

Siria bit into it. The sweetness of the icing blasted over her tongue. It tasted better than she had ever imagined. "It's so good."

…

Siria stared up at the ceiling of her and Sanji's bedroom. Her mind was still on the party, which had lasted for hours. It had officially ending a few hours ago. Still there was one thing left she wanted to do. She rolled onto her side. "Sanji? Are you still awake?"

"Yes?"

"Thank you."

"Hm?" Sanji turned to her.

"For everything," Siria said. "You spoke with Luffy, right? About how I felt about the crew?"  
"I guess I did." Sanji smiled. "But you know Luffy already accepted you as his friend and a crewmember. He's like that. He did it to all of us, even when we turned him down."

"He's funny," Siria said. "I'm glad he's our captain."

"Don't tell him I said this but I am too," Sanji said. He pulled her blanket up to her shoulders. "Sleep now."


	11. A Mermaid & a Starfish

A Mermaid & a Starfish

Siria swung her war hammer around and around. She swung it to her right, then to her left, then downward. The weapon was starting to feel better in her hands but her arms were still too weak. She could only handle it for a few minutes before her arms gave out on her.

"That's enough for today," Zoro said. "Why don't you work with your shadows for a change?"

"Good idea." Siria panted. Sitting her war hammer down she grabbed the water Sanji had set out for her and took a drink. She then placed it back on the deck and focused on her shadow manipulation. Creating several squirrels she had them scatter out around the ship to see what her crewmates were doing. Over the past couple of weeks she had gotten better at seeing and hearing what multiple people were doing. And she could now hold a shadow weapon for ten solid minutes before it faded away. She had no idea if this was going to work in a real fight but at least she was improving. In all honesty she hope to never have to fight, but knew that was naïve thinking since she was now a pirate.

One of her squirrel scampered up the stairs. It ran down to the back of the ship and into the infirmary. Chopper started to leave the door cracked open when he was in there so she could let her shadow animals go inside. He smiled when she saw the little creature. "Hey, Siria. I hope your training's going well."

Siria smiled. She had the squirrel wave to the reindeer before calling it back to her. The ability to hear what people were saying made her often wonder if she would be able to speak back to her friends. Sanji encouraged her to keep trying. She's tried multiple times but so far hadn't gotten any results from it. Still she kept trying on occasion, especially when she grew a little more in her control.

Luffy smiled and tried to grab the squirrel she had sent his way. When he did she jumped the squirrel upon his head and had it run all over his body. "Hey! Stop that! It tickles!"

Siria laughed. She proceeded to move on to the rest of the crew when the ship suddenly rocked. Her shadow squirrels turned back into shadows and rejoined her. "What was that?"

"Ah! What are those things?!" Usopp shrieked.

"They're Serpent Currents," Nami said.

"Serpent Currents?" Siria looked at her friend then up at the thing they were looking at. Her jaw went slack when she saw them. Several currents were weaving up and down through the ocean surface. And they really did look like snakes. It sent a thrill up Siria's spine, but also caused her to shiver with concern. A loud boom of thunder rumbled over head.

"Should we use a Coop de Burst?" Franky asked.

"Don't bother. It won't work." Nami looked through her binoculars. "We're completely surrounded. If we try will only get trapped inside of them."

The ship lifted into the air. Siria stumbled.

"I got you." Sanji appeared in front of her. He wrapped his arms around her, securing her to his chest.

"Thanks." Siria looked up at him.

"We've got to do something!" Sanji said.

"I'm looking!" Nami replied as the current continued to lift them higher and higher.

Usopp and Chopper screamed. One of the currents was rushing right towards them.

Laughing, Brook leapt into the air and sliced the current in half.

Siria was about to comment on his move when she caught movement. Another sea current was heading right towards them. "Sanji!"

"I'm on it!" Sanji dashed away from her. Leaping into the air he spun around, deflecting the current with a rapid spin of his kicks.

Siria was grateful they were able to deflect the water. She knew she wasn't strong enough yet to help. A sudden scream from Chopper pulled her attention.

The reindeer had lost his balance and fell overboard.

"Chopper!" Siria screamed. Her heart hammered in her chest. Shadows lifted up around her. They struck out at Chopper as if they were trying to grab him. But they only extended about fifteen yards out before snapping back to her. "What was that?"

"I've got him!" Robin held her hands over her chest. Her arms extended out. She grabbed Chopper and pulled him back onto the ship.

"That was scary. Thank you, Robin." Tears poured from Chopper's eyes.

"Hey! I see a way out! Get ready for a Coop de Burst!" Nami said.

"Right!" Franky ran up to the helm. Thunder rumbled above them. Rain pelted their bodies.

Siria stared in confusion. Her shadow shouldn't have reacted. The clouds above them hid the sun. _Was it Bran? Did it reach out for Chopper?_

"Hold on tight!" Sanji grabbed Siria and backed against the wall.

Siria, snapping out of her thoughts, held on tight to him. While she had never experienced a Coop de Burst before she was warned about it and was instructed to lean against the wall if by herself. But Sanji assured her he would keep her safe. And he did. He kept his arms tightly around her, bracing for the impact of the sudden move. Then it happened. The ship gave a violent jerk and they shot through the air. Siria yipped in surprise.

"I've got you," Sanji assured her.

She nodded. Closing her eyes she waited for the impact of the ship to hit the ocean. It seemed like hours before the ship finally landed. When it did Sanji's body relaxed. "We made it? That was scary."

Sanji chuckle. "You all right?"

"Yeah." Siria nodded again despite her trembling body.

"We finally made it!" Luffy said.

"It's been such a long time," Nami said before the crew started reminiscing about where they had came from and how long they had been on the ocean.

Siria had pretty much heard it all before. She had learned a lot since being with them. And she often recited what they told her so she wouldn't forget where they had come from.

"You know it was raining on that day too," Sanji said.

"What day?" Siria asked.

"The day we went up Reverse Mountain," Sanji said. "This is the next step in our journey. It's exciting."

"The next step of our journey." Siria looked down. Her shadow was still missing.

"What is it, Siria?" Sanji asked.

"I'm not sure." Siria looked up at him. "When Chopper fell overboard. My shadow reached out for him."

"What's so strange about that?" Usopp asked.

"It's cloudy," Siria said.

"That's right. You can't manipulate your shadows when…" Usopp trailed off. His eyes bugged out with worry. "Wait a second! Do you think Bran did it?! But he, or it, attacks when it comes out! Do you think it was trying to kill Chopper?!"

Siria's eyes widened. She didn't think of that. Bran could have been trying to kill Chopper. It would have been easy. Chopper had no real way of defending himself while falling through the air like he was. Her body trembled.

"Don't go jumping to conclusions like that," Sanji said. "When Bran takes control it wraps around Siria."

"I guess you have a point. But what would you call what happened?" Usopp asked.

"I don't know." Sanji shook his head. "All I know is we shouldn't jump to conclusions." He took Siria's hand. "Understand me? Put it out of your mind. It's over now. Chopper is safe."

Warmth from his hand spread over hers.

"Yeah." Chopper climbed upon Siria's shoulder. "I'm fine. Don't worry about me."

"Okay. I won't worry about it. So what now?" Siria asked. She looked up at the giant red wall made of rock in front of them. There didn't appear to be a place where they could cross it.

"We need to find the entrance to Fishman Island." Nami looked at her log pose. "The arrow's still pointing down though. I don't get it. The entrance should be around here somewhere."

"Remember what Granny Kokoro said," Sanji said. "Fishman Island is under the water. So it's possible the entrance has to be down there too."

"Monster Granny?" Luffy asked.

Siria remembered her from Franky's stories and from the stories she was told of Water 7. Apparently the old woman was an ice fish mermaid but some of the crew had chosen to forget it. Usopp even drew a picture of the old woman so she would know what the fuss was about.

"Well, I guess someone's going to have to go down in the Shark Submerge and look for it," Usopp said.

"I want to go!" Luffy waved his hand.

"I would like to go as well," Brook said.

"Sounds like fun." Robin smiled.

"Are you sure it's safe? You're all devil fruit users." Siria looked at him. Worry clouded her chest. "Maybe you all shouldn't go."

"It'll be fine," Luffy said. He ran to the hatch, pulled it open, and jumped it. Brook and Robin followed soon after.

Siria frowned. All three of them seemed to be too carefree for having devil fruits.

"They'll be fine. Robin's with them after all," Sanji said.

"Chopper and I are going for a swim." Usopp stepped up to her. "Want to join us?"

"No. Thanks. I don't feel like swimming right now."

"Okay then." Usopp walked away from her.

Siria walked over to the side of the ship. Crossing her arms over the railing she watched as the mini submarine left the ship and disappeared below the water. "Be careful."

"I'm going to head up to the crow's nest and train." Zoro walked over to her. "Want to join me?"

"No." Siria shook her head. "I won't be able to concentrate on it while the others are down there."

"Okay." Zoro walked away from her.

Siria watched as the ripples from the mini sub faded away. Taking a deep breath she slowly let it out and waited.

…

"How does it look, guys?" Nami asked.

"No good. It's all dark."

Siria looked over her shoulder when Robin's voice came over the transponder snail. Those were not either training, swimming, or under the ocean surface had gathered around the small box that the transponder snail was sitting on. Well, Sanji wasn't there so she assumed he was in the kitchen.

"It's all dark! Hey, something shined just now," Luffy said next.

"Isn't that the eyeball of a sea monster? I'm going to die! But I'm already dead!" Brook laughed.

Siria's hands twitched nervously. Not wanting to hear anymore of it, she turned away from railing and went up to the kitchen.

"So how's it going out there?" Sanji asked when she stepped inside.

"Okay, I think. They say it's very dark down there and they saw something shiny. I'm getting to nervous to sit out there and listen to them," Siria said. "What are you making?"

"Some orange tarts. Done!" Sanji picked up the tray and offered one to Siria. "For you, my sweet sunshine."

"Thank you." Siria took one. She followed Sanji out the door. Instead of following him back down to the deck she lean against the rail and ate her treat mindlessly while ignoring the chatter below her. Finally after several painful minutes of more waiting the small sub broke the surface.

"Did you see anything?" Usopp asked.

"No," Robin said. "It's too dark down there. And we went farther than we should have."

"This is just great." Nami frowned. "Give us a break, Fishman Island."

Siria headed down the stairs. "Shouldn't there be other islands around here?"

"I'm sure there are," Nami said. "But we can't get to them without the log pose. And right now it's pointing to Fishman Island. And even if we did get it pointed to another island we'd have to wait there for how ever long for the log pose to reset."

"So then we're stuck." Siria turned her eyes to the horizon. "I wonder if it's possible for me to send my shadow creatures over the water."

"Possibly," Zoro said. "But you're still lacking control. You can only hold their forms for a few minutes still. While you have improved you won't be able to send them far enough to do any good here."

Siria nodded. She felt completely and utterly useless. There had to be something she could contribute to the crew. Her attention was broken from her thoughts when a large mass rose from the sea. "A sea rabbit?"

"Think we can eat it?" Luffy jumped up before anyone could answer. With a solid punch he knocked the creature out. Two things flew out of its mouth as it fell backwards.

Two masses fell towards the ship. One was smaller than the other.

"It can't be!" Sanji screamed.

Siria looked at him. His arms were open wide and his eyes had been replaced with hearts. Suddenly he was on the floor with something lying on top of him. She blinked at the pink tail.

"Yes! A perfect landing!" a voice said.

Siria's eyes drew to the small of the two masses. It looked like a starfish with a puffy hat. But from what she knew they weren't able to talk. So it couldn't have been a real starfish.

The starfish creature turned to the girl still laying on Sanji. "Uh, hey, Camie, you got a little something under your tail."

"What?! I flattened a human! I'm so sorry! I'm sorry! Are you okay?" She lifted Sanji up.

"It's okay! Don't worry!" Sanji said, blood dripping from his nose. "How are you doing?"

"It can't be. Is that a mermaid?" Nami asked.

"A mermaid?" Siria asked.

"They're half fish and half human creatures," Robin said.

"Right. I think I've heard my former master's kids speak about them before," Siria said. "I've never seen one before."

"What?! So many humans!" Camie said.

"Is she an enemy?" Siria asked.

"What? Oh no! I'm not your enemy," Camie said. "My name is Camie. Thank you very much for saving me before I was digested. I'm always getting eaten by marine animals. This is about the twentieth time."

"You might want to stop doing that," Usopp said.

"I really want to thank you for saving me. I know! Do you like octopus fritters?" Camie said.

"Octopus fritters?! I love them!" Luffy said.

"Really?! Well then, that will be five hundred beri each." Camie held out her hand.

"That's not thanking them if you charge them!" The starfish whacked Camie over the head.

"What?! I got it wrong?!" Camie screamed.

"What's going on?" Siria asked.

"Apparently this girl isn't the brightest out there," Nami said.

"I'm sorry. I really do want to thank all of you for saving us." Camie got up on her tail. She hopped over to the mast bench and sat down on it.

Siria watched the young mermaid carefully. Her eyes drifted to the pink tail. She wondered how powerful a mermaid's tail actually was. It had to be rather powerful if the mermaid could bounce on it the way she just did. Her attention was diverted when Sanji jumped up from the deck. He spun around like a tornado while saying, "Mermaids! The dream of all mankind! Finally, I've met with a real live mermaid!"

Siria rested her chin in her palm as she watched Sanji spin around. She studied his passion for the young mermaid. This had to be the only time she had ever seen him this excited about a female. Her eyes drifted back to Camie. The mermaid didn't seem to really care that Sanji was gushing over her.

"So cute!" Sanji spun over to Camie. "I've never seen a real mermaid before! Did you say your name was Camie-chan?"

"Oh? What about Kokoro?" Usopp asked.

Sanji dropped to his hands and knees. A dark cloud hovered over him.

Worry settled over Siria when he started mumbling something about not hurting anyone with his fantasies or something alone those lines. She couldn't be sure since she was too far away from him. She asked, "Is he okay?"

"He'll be fine," Robin said. "Remember Usopp's drawing of Kokoro? She wasn't a young beautiful mermaid."

"Oh. I see. Sanji likes Camie since she's young and beautiful." Siria's eyes drew over to the starfish. He was leaning against the wall, his own dark cloud surrounding him. He was saying something about being forgotten.

"Hey! I have a question! How do mermaids poop?" Luffy asked.

Siria cringed to his question and how hard Sanji kicked him for asking it. Shaking it from her mind she looked back to the starfish. "So what, or who, exactly is this guy?"

"Oh yeah." Luffy grabbed the starfish and pulled it to him. "I was wondering about you too. Hey, Camie! What is this? A talking glove?"

"Oh, I'm sorry. I completely forgot about him!" Camie smiled. "He's my pet, Pappag. He's also my master. He's a starfish."

"And starfish…can talk, can they?" Usopp crossed his arms.

"Your pet and your master…isn't that a bit weird?" Nami asked.

"Maybe so. But let me explain." Pappag pulled out a guitar.

"Where'd he get a guitar?" Siria asked.

"Just go with it," Usopp told her.

Pappag strummed the strings. "She keeps me as her pet, that's how it is. Camie! She always gives me clams!"

Cringing at the starfish's raspy singing voice, Siria turned back to Camie. "You said he was your master. But you're not wearing chains or cuffs. Does he trust you not to run away?"

"What? I'm not his slave or anything." Camie pointed at her shirt. "He's teaching me how to be a designer since I want to be one. This shirt comes from the Criminal Line. It's a really popular brand on Fishman Island."

"Oh, so he's actually your teacher," Siria said.

"That's right." Camie nodded. "Pappag would never enslave me."

"I see." Siria nodded. "I'm sorry for misunderstanding."

"It's okay," Camie said.

"Seriously. Why can you talk?" Luffy looked at the starfish who was depressed again.

"Is it not normal for starfish to talk?" Siria asked as she joined Sanji.

"No, not usually," Sanji said.

"That's a very good question. See back when I was a kid, I used to think I was a human. But the time I realized I was a starfish, I was already speaking like a human." The starfish shrugged.

"Does it really work like that?" Luffy asked.

"As it is, the world works in strange and frightening ways," Pappag said. "So as you can see I am Pappag! An up and coming designer starfish! Than you all for coming to my aid! I love all of you guys!"

"They sure change their moods rather quickly," Siria said.

"They are a bit on the odd side," Sanji said. "But they're no stranger than Luffy is."

"I suppose so." Siria nodded. Luffy could be rather strange with his enormous appetite and being able to fall asleep so easy in the middle of conversations. Not to mention his habit of asking certain _creatures_ if they could poop.

"In any case, this is some really good timing. We were having a bit of trouble ourselves," Nami said. "There's something we need to ask."

"Hey, Nami! Octopus fritters come first!" Luffy screamed.

"Of, yes, of course. You must have some for rescuing me." Camie pulled out a transponder snail from her backpack. She dialed the number and it started to ring. "We'll have to meet up with Hacchin somewhere." With a clink her friend answered the call. "Hello there, Hacchin? This is Camie. Sorry I got kind of lost. Where are you right now?"

The line remained silent.

"Um, I know I'm a bit naïve to some things but isn't someone suppose to answer when you call them?" Siria pointed at the snail then looked at Sanji.

"Yeah. That's how it goes," Sanji said.

"Oh, Camie, is it?" Someone on the other end of the transponder snail laughed. "Do you know to whom you are speaking? This ain't Hachi, you know!"

"What?! This isn't Hacchin?!" Camie screamed.

"This is Makuro! The Famous Idiotic Makuro crew!"

"Don't say idiotic!" a second voice said.

"Well, this isn't good. It sounds like something's wrong," Robin said.

"Hey! What on earth are you doing with Hacchin's transponder snail?!" Camie asked.

"Why, because we've beaten up your precious Hachi, of course!" The person laughed again.

"What? No way! Hacchin would never be beaten up by the likes of you!" Camie said.

"Well, I guess you're right. Usually, we'd be no match for the guy, but this time we were prepared. We have the Flying Fish Riders on our side!"

"Nyu- - Camie…so you're okay. I'm glad," a third voice said.

"Ah! Hacchin, did they really capture you?!" Camie asked.

"They kind of caught me off guard. You mustn't come find me! Nyu. I'll take these guys out myself and come meet up with you again! I'll be fine! Don't worry about me!"

"You know what, Camie, we're going to sell this guy off real soon. Octopus fishmen are pretty rare. He'll fetch quite the high price! You want to save him? Then come and try! We're at the Sabaody Archipelago, in the waters five kilometers east of Grove 44. At the base of the Flying Fish Riders."

"You mustn't, Camie! Don't even think about coming here!"

"Shut up, you octopus freak!"

"Ngyuu!"

"See ya!"

The snail fell asleep, signaling the end of the call.

Siria pinched a hold of Sanji's sleeve. "This is bad, isn't it?"

"Looks like it." Sanji nodded.

"Hacchin…" Camie said.

"And the octopus fritters?" Luffy asked.

"Now's not the time!" Franky and Sanji shouted while hitting and kicking Luffy in the head.

"Wait a minute. That Hacchin guy who was on the transponder snail just now, his voice sounded very familiar." Nami took her chin between her fingers. "It can't be. It must be my imagination."

"What is it?" Siria asked.

"It's probably nothing," Nami said. "But he kind of sounded like a guy I use to know."

"Oh," Siria said.

"I'm sorry, Luffy-chin. But would it be all right if I gave you some octopus fritters later?" Camie asked, her face twisted with worry. "I have to go safe my friend right now."

"Huh?" Luffy said.

"Wait a minute now, Camie." Nami held out her hand. "I don't mean to interfere but if you're going to try and save your friend from those kidnappers. We'd be glad to help you out." She waved her hand at Franky and Usopp. "Ah, well, to be more accurate, these guys will help you out."

"What about you?!" Franky and Usopp asked.

"And in returned you can show us the way to Fishman Island. Is that okay?" Nami asked.

"Huh? Are you sure, Nami-chin?" Camie asked. "You'll really help me get Hacchin out of there?! Luffy-chin?"

"Sounds fine. But who is Hacchin anyway?" Luffy asked.

"He runs the octopus fritter shop. I work there with him. We make the best octopus fritters ever," Camie said.

"We have to save him! All right, men! We're going to recue the octopus fritters! Even if we die in the process!" Luffy said.

"Yeah!" the guys cheered.

"You seem really happy about it," Siria said to Sanji.

"Well, yeah!" Sanji grinned. "I get to spend more time with the beautiful mermaid."

Siria shook her head. "You can be so one track minded at times. Did you know that?"

Sanji chuckled. "I guess so. But I do want to taste the octopus fritters too. I love sampling dishes made by others."

"What's she doing?" Siria asked when Camie hopped over to the railing.

"Apparently, Camie is going to ask some fish to help lead us to the Flying Fish Riders," Chopper said.

"Really? She can do that?" Siria's eyes widened slightly.

"Hey! A lot of fish just appeared!" Luffy said, leaning over the railing. "So cool!"

"We'd like to get directions from you," Camie said. "We're trying to get to the Flying Fish Riders hideout."

Siria walked over to Camie and Luffy. She looked down to see the fish as they formed an arrow in the water by quickly flapping their tails near the surface. It looked almost like someone had painted an arrow on the water. "Wow. You can really talk to fish."

"Yes. But, apparently, they're scared of those Flying Fish guys. So they won't go too close themselves, but they'll show us the way," Camie said.

"So cool! It's really impressive you can talk to fish! I didn't know mermaids could do that! But wait, how can they hear you when they're underwater?" Nami asked.

"Wow, Camie. With you around we could eat as much fish as we want," Luffy said.

"Watch what you say, you idiot!" Sanji grabbed Luffy's cheek and pulled it.

"This is amazing! All we have to do is follow the arrow!" Nami said.

"Right! I got the helm!" Usopp's shoes thumped on the stairs as he ran up them.

Siria watched him go before taking a few steps away from everyone. She gazed worryingly into the water. Her mind worked to process the situation they had gotten themselves in. She knew they had been in fights before but this was the first time _she_ was going to be with them. It was unnerving. Her fingers trembled at the images that flashed through her mind. While she never saw their fights she could easily imaging her new friends with scars and bruises. It wasn't a comforting thought. They could get seriously hurt.

"Siria?"

Siria jumped at the sound of her name. "S-Sanji."

"Sorry." Sanji smiled. "I didn't mean to scare you like that."

"It's okay." Siria avoided eye contact. She rubbed her hand on her arm. "I wasn't paying attention anyway."

"You're worried," Sanji said.

Siria sighed. She gave him a timid look. "I'm easy to read."

"It wasn't just that." Sanji leaned against the railing. He reached into his pocket, lifting out his packet of cigarettes. Pausing he shoved them back inside. "I know this is the first fight you're going to be near since being with us."

Siria mimicked his position. "Is it going to be bad?"

"Hard to say since none of us have meet these guys before," Sanji said.

Siria frowned.

"Hey, don't worry about it." Sanji nudged her with his shoulder. "It'll be fine. After all Luffy's got his mind set on those octopus fritters. Nothing's going to stop him from getting them. He'll probably take a bite out of our enemies to get to them."

Siria smiled.

"That's much better," Sanji said. "You know you need to smile more. You're a lot prettier when you smile."

Heat pressed against Siria's cheeks. She fiddled with her fingers. "Um, thank you."

"Feeling better now?" Sanji asked.

"I am, but I'm still worried," Siria said. "What should I do during this fight?"

"You don't have to do anything," Sanji said. "Leave it up to us. I'll make sure you're safe."

"Thanks, Sanji," Siria said. "I don't mean to be a pain."

"You're not being a pain. You're being a friend. It's normal for you to be worried," Sanji said.

"I still have a lot to learn." Siria sighed.

"It takes time. I've told you that before. Don't worry about it. You're developing just fine."

"Really?" Siria looked up at him. "I don't really feel I've changed much."

"You have." Sanji nodded. "Trust me."

"You know," Siria said. "We never really have talked."

"We talk." Sanji's eyes widened slightly.

"I mean about your family," Siria said. She noticed Sanji gulp. His posture stiffened ever so slightly. It happened so quickly she almost missed it. For a second she thought she had imagined it since he was back to his normal, relaxed self. But, no, she had really seen him tense up a bit. "Sanji? You tensed. Are you okay?"

"Yeah. I'm fine." Smiling he looked out at the horizon. "And, yeah, I know we haven't talked about my family. There's really not much to tell."

"But I want to know," Siria said. "I want to know about them and where you came from."

"You know where I come from," Sanji said. "I told you about Zeff."

"Yeah." Siria paused. She second guessed herself. Maybe she shouldn't be pushing this but something kept her going. "But I want to know about your, uh, blood family."

Sanji stilled.

"I'm sorry." Siria glanced down at the water. "I don't mean to pry where I'm not wanted. It's just…I don't know. I guess I just want to know all about you because you've already done so much for me. I want to understand you." She flicked a quick glance at him before returning her gaze to the water. A large fish swam by just below the surface. "I'm sorry. I won't pry into your life. It's just you said you wanted me to be more open and I-"

"Siria," Sanji said, his voice low. A hint of something she didn't recognize was in his tone.

Siria flinched. Her heart pounded in her chest. She was scared she had done something she shouldn't have. But she didn't understand what. He did want her to get to know them. But he appeared not to want to tell her about his family. Or maybe Zeff was his real family. Maybe he didn't have any blood relatives left. The majority of the crew had traumatic pasts. Maybe he did too and wasn't ready to talk about it.

"Look at me."

Siria swallowed. Licking her lips she turned to face Sanji and whatever he was going to say to her. Instead of words his forehead met with hers. She blinked. "S-Sanji?"

He didn't respond. For several minutes he kept silent, his eyes closed, his forehead pressed against hers.

Siria noticed he didn't smell like smoke so much anymore. Instead he smells like cooking spices. It was a smoothing smell, one she hadn't noticed before. Her worries disappeared.

"Siria." Sanji opened his eyes. Softly he looked at her. "I promise one day I will tell you about my family. My blood family. For now just give me a little time."

"Okay," Siria said. "I'll wait for you to tell me."


	12. Flying Fish Riders

Flying Fish Riders

Siria continued to stare out at the sea while Sanji rejoined the others. Her mind was still spinning a bit with her recent interaction with him. And while he had put most of her concerns at rest she still was worried about their up and coming fight. A fight they were most likely were going to arrive any second now.

"Hey, Siria," Sanji called. "You should hear this."

"Okay." Siria pushed off the railing. She walked over to him and the crew.

"The Sabaody Archipelago is home to many more gangs like the Flying Fish Riders," Pappag was saying. "Trading in human beings is a big business around here."

"Buying and selling people. That's just not right," Sanji said.

"Buying and selling people?" Siria asked.

Sanji turned to her. His hard gaze faded away to a softer one. "Slaves, Siria."

Siria gulped. They were headed to a place that sold slaves.

"These Flying Fish Riders capture people to be slaves. In turn they get money for them," Sanji said.

Siria's heart clenched. "Do you think…that I was sold? Maybe by my parents?"

Sanji sighed. He put his arm around Siria and pulled her to him. "I don't know. But I assure you it won't happen again."

Siria nodded. She leaned into him, letting his warmth surround her.

"Is she okay?" Pappag asked.

"She's fine. She was a slave before coming to us," Sanji said.

"I see. I'm sorry," Pappag said.

"You were a slave? That's so sad." Camie frowned.

"Thank you. And, well, it was really all I knew." Siria shrugged. "But it's over now. For me anyway."

"Yeah, well, mermaids can fetch a really high price since they're so hard to catch," Pappag continued. "The Macro Gang, of three Fishmen, have been after Camie for a long time now. As for Hachi from the ship…Well, since we were eaten by that beast and didn't come back for a while he probably thought the Macro crew had got their hands on us and went after them himself to save us from them."

"Yes. That has to be it. Hacchin is very kind and loyal." Camie's face filled with sadness again.

Siria could sympathize with her. She had no idea what she would do now if she ever lost Sanji or any of the Straw Hats. And Camie had known her friend longer than she's known the pirates.

"You say he's an octopus and he's called Hachi," Zoro said. "Kind of reminds me of an idiot fishman we ran into before."

"Yeah. If it is him, I wouldn't really want to save him. Not that it could be," Sanji said.

"Who are you talking about exactly?" Siria asked.

"One of the fishmen that attacked my village," Nami said.

"Oh, right." Siria nodded. Nami did tell her about that.

"Under normal circumstances, Hachi could take out those idiots in a flash, but to think that they would bring in the Flying Fish Riders into it. They suddenly started making a ruckus around these parts recently. They're another of the kidnapping gangs. They say if those guys are after you, you're finished. Their boss is called Duval, and he wears an iron mask. But from what I've heard he seems to be looking for someone. He's been searching every ship that passes through these waters," Pappag said.

"Well, anyway, Camie! Don't you worry! We'll save the octopus fritters no matter what," Luffy said.

"You mean Hachi," Pappag said.

"Yes thank you so much," Camie said.

"Hey, Brook! Play us a song to get us in the mood!" Luffy said.

"But of course." Brook pulled out his violin. Pulling the bow across it he filled the air with a song he's played before.

"Huh?" Camie looked up.

"What's wrong, Camie?" Nami asked.

"The fish are saying they're sorry, but this is as far as they go," Camie said.

"So we're close to the hide out?" Siria asked. She looked around, seeing only the water, sky, and clouds.

Suddenly, Pappag shouted, "Agh! They're here! The Flying Fish Riders!"

Luffy ran up to the figurehead. "Where? I can't see a thing!"

"They're not in the sea! Look up!" Camie pointed to the sky.

Siria looked up. Her mouth fell open from the sight of fish flying in the air. "Is that really possible?!"

"It seems so!" Sanji said.

"Whoa! The fish are really flying!" Usopp said. One of the fish swooped down and flew right at them.

"Look out!" Sanji grabbed Siria. He shielded her with his body.

A snap and crack rose in the air. Panic settled in with it. The crew's voices mixed together.

"That one was close!"

"They're coming around again!"

"Watch out! Those flying fish…once they jump out of the water they can stay in the air for five minutes!" Pappag said.

"This is just great!" Franky said, aiming his hand at them. "How are we suppose to fight them while they're in the air?!"

"I don't suppose you have some flying machine hidden onboard?" Siria asked. She peaked out from underneath Sanji's body and looked at the cyborg.

"Nope. I never thought we would have to face an opponent in the sky." Franky moved his arm along with the flying fish but never took a shot. "The weapons we have on the ship are sea based."

Suddenly the flying fish turned in the opposite direction and flew off.

"The flying fish just took off," Usopp said. He sighed heavily with relief.

"What happened?" Siria asked.

"Looks like they received some kind of communication." Sanji lifted off Siria then helped her stand up. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine."

"An order to retreat? I don't see why thought," Robin said. "They had us by surprise. They could have killed us all."

"Must you talk like that?!" Usopp asked.

"I wanna have a go on those flying fish! Wow! Spending five whole minutes in the air!" Luffy said. "That must be awesome!"

"At any rate we'll be seeing them again at the place we're headed to. It is better to be properly prepared for a fight. To think they'd just swoop down from the sky like that," Sanji said. "They're not going to be an easy foe to beat."

"How do we fight them then?" Siria asked.

"We have the cannons. Shouldn't we move them out on the deck? I'll shoot them down easily?" Usopp looks down from the helm deck.

"Good idea." Franky gave him a thumbs up. "We'll be needing them in this fight."

"Right!" Usopp nodded. He and Chopper, in his human form, ran to the room housing the cannons.

Siria walked over to the railing. She watched the waters for any sign of the base they were heading to. A few minutes passed when she finally saw something in the distance. "Hey, I see something."

"I guess we have arrived." Sanji leaned over the railing.

"We're here! That's it, right? The Flying Fish Riders base!" Luffy said.

"That's where this Hacchin guy is being kept prisoner. I'll go in there and save him in a flash, Camie!" Sanji said.

"Thank you, Sanji!" Camie said.

"Make sure you're careful, everyone," Camie said. "The Macro crew alone has captured me about thirty times."

"You get captured and eaten way too much!" Usopp said.

"It's not an island," Siria said when they got close enough. There were several buildings together. Large poles held up the boards where the small town sat. No one was outside. "It doesn't look like there's anyone there."

"It's rather quiet," Brook said. "Didn't the flying fish return here?"

"Hey, Luffy," Nami said.

"Full speed ahead," Luffy ordered.

"Siria's right. This isn't even an island. It's like someone build a village on top of the water. I wonder if they have some special reason for living out here?" Robin said.

Siria noticed Sanji carefully scanning the town, as they pulled closer to its bay. In the middle of the bay hung a large bird like cage. "There's someone in that cage."

"Hacchin!" Camie waved. "Hacchin, are you okay?!"

"Get out here, Macro! Give back Hachi, you hear?!" Pappag shouted.

"Look there's a cage hanging there. Looks like someone's inside of it," Usopp said.

"Uh, yeah." Sanji rolled his eyes. "I just said that."

"Hm? Could it be Hacchin?" Camie took a closer look.

"This is great, Camie. There aren't even any enemies around. They must all be off having a snack," Pappag said.

"Are you guys even trying to be serious? No matter which way you look at it this whole thing just screams trap. They bad guys must all be hiding around here somewhere ready to leap out and attack us," Franky said.

"Whoa! You're amazing!" Camie said.

"I didn't even think of such a low down dirty trick!" Pappag added.

"That's why you keep on getting captured!" Franky yelled.

"Nyu! I'm right over here! I'm okay! Don't worry about me!"

Siria glanced at the cage when a familiar voice came from it. Inside of it was someone tied up and covered with something back. It took her a minute to place the voice with one from the transponder snail. "Is that who you're looking for?"

"Ah! Hacchin! You're all black! What happened?! Did you get burned?" Camie asked.

"Nyu? No, No, this is…don't worry about it. More importantly, this is a trap! You have to turn back! You know I'm strong, don't you? I'll be fine. You get away!"

"I've definitely heard that voice before. And that silhouette. Nami, what do you think?" Zoro asked.

"There's something very suspicious about them," Nami said.

"What's that?" Luffy asked.

"Let's try this," Sanji said. "Hey! How's Arlong doing?"

"Nyu? Ah. Arlong? He and Chuu and Kuroobi…They're all still prisoners of the marines. I'm the only one who escaped. And managed to set up an octopus fritter ship like I've always dreamed of," Hachi said.

"Oh, crap! It's really you!" Sanji cursed.

"What's this?" Robin asked.

"Oh, right. Well, it was a while ago now," Usopp said. "But Nami's home town was under the control of the nasty pirate crew called the Arlong Pirates. And that octo-guy was one of the crew's top member."

"Huh? An old enemy," Franky said.

"Well, of course I took Luffy and the guys along and beat the lot of them up," Usopp said. "And the whole crew was defeated."

"Wow!" Chopper gasped.

"I thought all the fishmen from back them were imprisoned by marines," Usopp said. "But it looks like one of them got away."

"Interesting. You've been through quite a lot," Brook said sipping tea.

"So wait, that octopus fritter seller Hacchin was you all along?" Luffy shouted. "That crazy octo-Hachi from Alrong's crew?! Like we'd come and save a guy like you, jerk! But wait! Uh…your octopus fritters! Are they really that good?!"

"Oh, come on. Getting caught between your appetite and your reason?" Sanji said.

"Of for the love of…" Zoro said.

"You guys! Were you really Hacchin's friends all along?" Camie asked.

"We ain't his friends," Zoro said menacingly.

"What?!" Camie shrieked. "Nami-chin!"

"Turn the ship around!" Usopp yelled.

"Sorry about this, Camie. I never thought your friend could possibly turn out to be him." Nami pressed her fingers to her forehead.

"Now way. Then, are you telling me you're not going to help me save him?" Camie asked. "Hacchin!"

"Nyu! Camie! That's enough! You should just go! This is a trap!" Hachi said.

"I can't! I…I'm going to save you! You always come and save us, don't you? Pappag!" Camie said.

"That's right! I never thought you guys would be such a load of unfeeling halfwits! Dummies!" Pappag added.

"Shut up," Zoro said.

"Hacchin! I'll never abandon you!" Camie headed for the railing.

"Wait for us, Hachi!" Pappag followed her. The two leaped over the railing. A splash rose up when they hit the water.

"They jumped overboard," Siria said.

Camie screamed when she and Pappag was lifted up out of the water. Three guys were holding them.

"Oh, come on! That's just pathetic!" Usopp said.

"Why, those little…! Camie-chan never did anything wrong!" Sanji growled. "I'm going to go save her at least! Siria, stay on the ship!"

"Uh, okay," Siria said.

"Wait a minute, Sanji," Nami said.

"What? Why?" Sanji looked at her.

"I've decided that it's okay for use to save Hachi, too," Nami said.

"Huh?" The crew looked at her, their faces contorted in shock.

"Hachi's all right. To be honest, he's harmless really. Besides, we did make a promise to Camie," Nami said.

"Nami-chan! You're so sweet!" Sanji squealed.

"Luffy!" Nami said.

"Well, if you say so, I guess there's no helping it. Let's save octo-boy as well," Luffy said. He turned to face them, his eyes were different.

"His eyes have turned into fritters!" Usopp said.

Siria jumped when Luffy suddenly shot himself off the ship. She watched as he flew to their two new friends and saved them from the guys holding them. Her body tensed when he flew over the water. She relaxed when he landed with them on the deck of the town.

"All right. Time to battle, everyone," Brook said. Everyone pulled out their weapons and stood ready.

Sanji, Zoro, and Chopper jump up to the helm. "Here they come!"

Usopp said, "Ah! Bombs! They're going to pelt the ship with them!"

Siria looked up. Several round dots were dropped from the fish. Her mind screamed at her to move but her body wouldn't listen.

"Siria!" She blinked. Her mind cleared in time to see Sanji kicked them away from her and the ship. "How dare you try and drop bombs on my sweet little sunshine?! You're going to pay for that!"

"Sanji!" Siria watched him drop back to the deck.

"You okay?" Sanji looked at her, eyeing her for damage.

"I'm fine. Thank you."

Sanji smiled.

"Luffy's hanging onto a flying fish!" Chopper said. "What do we do?!"

Siria looked up. Luffy was sitting on a flying fish laughing.

"Just leave him," Sanji said. "You know he does what he wants."

"Raise the sail! It'll get in the way!" Nami said.

Suddenly the fish Luffy was on dove into the water. Before she could say anything Brook and Chopper dove in after him. Her heart leaped. Her body rushed forwards. "They jumped in! They're devil fruit users!"

"Hold it." Sanji held out his arm to stop her.

"Sanji! They're going to drown!" Siria said.

"I know but Nami and Franky already jumped in," Sanji said. "They'll take care of it. I don't want you in the water with fishmen and those flying fish guys near by."

"Sanji." Siria held her breath. The seconds ticked by painfully slow as she waited for their friends to surface. Then they did. Franky and Nami hauled themselves and the devil fruit users up onto the ship. She sighed with relief.

"You stupid idiot!" Franky said. "Why did you jump in too?!"

"I berry sorry," Chopper said.

"The sabe…goes for byself," Brook said. "Sorry for all this trouble."

"It's a pain for us, too, you know, when we have to fish you out of the water?!" Nami slaps them. "Stop giving us so much trouble!"

"Hey! Zoro!" Luffy called. "Free the octo-man!"

"Sure." Zoro jumped towards the cage.

"Here they come," Usopp said readying a cannon. "Take this!"

Siria cover her ears seconds before the cannon went off. The cannon ball hit its target. The flying fish fell to the water.

"You're amazing, Usopp," Chopper said.

"You all seem so at ease fighting," Siria said, wishing she could be of help.

"You'll help one day," Sanji said. "Don't worry about it."

A shadow fell over the ship. Everyone looked up. Another Flying Fish Rider was heading right for them. This guy was bigger than the others. He swung a large club as he approached them.

"There's a really big guy coming," Chopper said. "He's swinging a really big club. Is this what they were talking about? I heard one of them saying something about medical fees."

"The guy's not even steering. Don't tell me…a kamikaze charge? A giant like that at that speed the ship won't hold," Sanji said. "Luffy, take care of the fish."

"Right." Luffy got up off the deck ready to fight again.

"He doesn't look like he's going to budge," Usopp said.

"Well, he's not the only one who packs a punch in the air." Sanji ran towards the edge of the ship. Luffy followed them. They leapt into the air.

Siria watched them. Luffy's body grew round and large. Sanji headed right for the man on the fish. While Luffy blocked the fish Sanji slammed his foot down on the man. "They work together so well."

Luffy flipped the fish back and slammed it onto the deck.

Siria felt the hit vibrating up from her shoes. She examined the large fish now lying unconscious on the deck.

"It's really large close up." Robin picked up one of the fish's fins.

"It is." Siria inched closer to the fish. "How is it possible they can fly?"

"It doesn't matter. This fish is going to be dinner," Luffy said.

"You want to eat it?" Siria looked at the captain.

Another fish zoomed closer to the deck. Usopp dove for the deck. "Dang it! There're so many! Do we really have to take them all down?! It's going to take forever!"

"Dang it! I want to ride one of them!" Luffy said. "Don't think I've given up on trying!"

"Oh, would you please give up on that?! I'm not saving you next time!" Nami said.

"Alas and alack! What am I playing at? My first battle as one of the Straw Hat pirates. It would be a disgrace if I could not even lend a hand!" Brook said.

"Hey, what's up Brook?" Luffy asked.

"It's about time we reduce their numbers somewhat." Brook pulled out his sword. "It isn't much but please observe carefully."

Siria watched him leap into the air. He pulled out his violin and played it. The men on the fish fell asleep as did Luffy and Chopper.

"You guys too?" Sanji screamed.

Brook landed on the water. But he didn't sink. Instead he ran across the surface.

"Amazing. Brook really can run on the water," Siria said.

"Yeah!" Luffy grabbed onto another fish.

"There he goes again." Siria watched the captain pull himself back upon a flying fish before her eyes fell to Zoro. He and the octopus man were standing near the town. She wasn't sure what it was but Zoro didn't look right to her. "Sanji, something doesn't look right with Zoro."

"Oh? Don't worry about him. He'll be fine." Sanji looked at her then Zoro.

"Are you sure? He kind of looks like he's in pain."

"He got a few left over bruises from our last battle," Sanji said. "But trust me. He's the last guy you have to worry about."

"Okay then." Siria nodded but the concern remained. The concern was broken when sounds of crumbling buildings and snapping wood pulled all of their attention. A large man sitting on something that resembled a cow was rampaging through the town. "Who is that guy?"

"He's not on a fish," Sanji said. "So maybe this is that Duval guy they told us about."

"He's destroying his own base," Usopp said.

"I don't need this base anymore! As long as I kill the Straw Hat crew!" Duval shouted. "Listen up! I didn't enter the human trade business because I wanted to! You all understand that, don't you?!"

"Of course, Head!" a man said.

"This glorious day, today is…! That man who I've wanted to kill and kill. That man who I've seen in my dreams is…right here before my eyes. Thank you. There really is a God!" Duval said.

"What's he talking about?" Siria asked.

"I'm not sure," Nami said.

"That man, who on a certain day, sent me to hell!" As Duval continued speaking his voice took on an accent. "Today I…even if it comes down to a battle of stabbing at each other…I will definitely kill you! Blackleg Sanji! I've wanted to meet you."

"Me?" Sanji asked.

"Sanji." Siria took a hold of Sanji's hand. "Who is he?"

"I don't know," Sanji said.

"Did his voice just change?" Usopp asked. "What is with this guy?"

"Sanji, who is that guy? Does he have some kind of grudge against you? Franky asked.

"Would it be someone from the restaurant? Try hard and remember," Nami said.

"If we're talking about back then I've made a lot of people have grudges against me." Sanji's eyebrow lifted in thought.

"Rightful revenge?" Usopp draped his arm around Sanji's shoulder.

Chopper hung on to him. "That guy's scary!"

"Don't just stand there looking stupid!" Duval said. He pulls a gun out and shoots at them. "This is something recent!"

"Watch out!" Sanji grabs Siria seconds before several thumps hit the deck. "Harpoons! He said it's recent? This makes less and less sense."

A dark purple mist rose out of the harpoons.

"What?! This harpoon! Something's weird about it!" Usopp shrieked.

"These are Scorpion's Poison harpoons," Duval said. "If they get you, you'll be heading to the next world within three minutes. Learn my wrath! I'll kill both you and your crew!" He shoots again.

Sanji picked Siria up and dodged the attack. "Careful, Nami! Don't get hit by them! Crap! I don't remember a thing! Who the heck are you?!"

"Hey, Luffy's up to something," Siria said when she caught Luffy running towards Duval.

The crew watched as Luffy leaped up and kicked off Duval's helmet. The helmet clanked and rolled to a stop on the floor.

"Fine. Take a good look. Take a good look at my scarred face!" Duval said.

The crew gasped.

"I don't get it," Siria said. "What's wrong? Why did everyone gasp?"

Sanji sat her back on her feet. No one answered her.

"I've waited for this day for this day for so long. In order to send you to hell, I set out to sea," Duval said. "But finding you has been a problem because the face on the wanted poster is different from the face of the actual person himself."

"What's going on?" Siria asked.

"That guy looks just like Sanji's bounty poster," Nami said.

"What?" Siria looked to the woman.

"When we got our bounty posters Sanji's, for some reason, was a drawing. It looks exactly like that guy does," Nami said.

"Really?" Siria turned just in time to see Sanji racing towards Duval. "Sanji!"

"Even if bounty hunters or the marines were to come across the real one they would just walk right passed him," Duval said. "They saw me as you. They thought I was _you_! I would tell them that I'm not you! I don't know you! I'm not even a pirate! But they wouldn't listen! They continued to chase after me! Give me back my life!"

"I don't care!" Sanji kicked him.

"What do you mean you don't care?! Who else is suppose to take responsibility for this?!" Duval demanded after recovering from the kick.

"Shut up! If anyone had the right to be ticked off at that poster it's me!" Sanji said.

"Wow, that surprised me. I guess it's a big world," Nami said.

"That Sanji…was he, like, born under some kind of miracle star or something?" Usopp asked.

"I'm sure he'll have a very interesting death some day," Robin said.

"Dang it! I can't help but feel sorry for the poor guy," Franky cried.

"So things like this really happen," Chopper said.

Siria sighed as the argument between Sanji and Duval continued. "How long is this going to go on?"

"Probably not for much longer!" Usopp said. "They've got a net and they're going for Sanji! Sanji! Get out of there! They're going to pull you into the ocean!"

"Now suffer and drown!" Duval shouted.

Siria's heart skipped a beat when Sanji got caught in the net and disappeared under the water. The bubbles from their submerging disappeared. She screamed and lunged for the railing. "No! Sanji!"

"Siria! Don't!" Usopp grabbed her.

"Let go! He's going to drown!" Siria thrashed against him.

"You can't go in there! If you do they'll only try to drown you too!" Usopp said.

"I don't care! I have to save Sanji!"

"Wait a second, Siria," Chopper said. "Camie just jumped in. If anyone can save him she can."

Siria stopped struggling in time to see Camie's pink tail disappearing below the surface. She swallowed and waited. The seconds ticked by so slow. Her lungs and heart squeezed inside of her. Her head spun. The world around her darkened. Her breathing came in short, sharp gasps. "I can't…Sanji."

Screams of her crew filtered through her ears but she was unable to make sense of them. Her legs gave out on her and she crumbled to the floor.

"Siria!" Usopp said. "Hold on! Don't faint on us!"

"She's hyperventilating!" Chopper said.

"What?!" Usopp said. "You've got to do something, Chopper."

"Sanji! He's okay!" Chopper then cried out. "Siria, look! Camie brought Sanji back!"

"Sanji?" Siria scrambled to her feet. Looking down she found Camie had Sanji in her arms. She brushed away her tears "I'm so relieved."

"He's breathing but he's bleeding a lot through his nose!" Camie said.

"He's fine," Usopp said.

"Hey, look over there," Robin said. "Luffy's won the cow over by talking to it."

Siria didn't care. She was too relieved that Sanji was okay to care about anything else in the moment. Her eyes locked onto Sanji. She watched his movements closely as he made his way back to the town. Even when he brutally kicked Duval multiple times she didn't look away.

"Let's move the ship closer so the others can get onboard," Franky said.

"I'm on it." Usopp ran up to the helm. The sails were dropped and they moved closer to the deck.

Siria waited anxiously for Sanji to climb upon the ship. When he did something hot bubbled up in her chest. Without thinking she rushed to him. Her hand lifted up. A smack rang through the air as her hand collided with his cheek. "Sanji! You idiot! Why did you do that?! You scared me!"

The crew froze in shock.

"She…she slapped him." Usopp cringed.

Eyes widened in shock, Sanji looked at her.

Siria glared at Sanji for several seconds before her mind registered what she had done. She gasped. Her hands flew to her mouth. "I…I…I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to…I wasn't trying to…" She backed away from him. Her knees buckled. She dropped to the deck. Her hands fell from her face. She looked at her slightly red hand. She had hit him. She had actually _hit_ Sanji. She had hurt him. Such in shock and fear she kept repeating the same thing over and over. "I'm sorry. I'm sorry. I'm sorry."

Siria didn't hear Sanji's steps as he moved to her.

Sanji knelt down and wrapped her in his arms. Stroking her hair he held her tight to his body. "No, Siria. I'm the one who's sorry. I didn't mean to scare you like that. It's okay now. I'm fine. Camie was able to get me back to the surface before I drowned."

Siria didn't hear him. She continued to say she was sorry. Her body started trembling.

"Is she going to be okay?" Usopp asked.

"Yeah." Sanji pulled Siria in his arms and stood up. "I'm going to take her to our room for a few minutes."

"Sure thing," Luffy said. "You take care of her."

Sanji nodded. Taking Siria he entered into their room. He sat down on the bed and held her in his lap. Minutes passed as she continued to say she was sorry and trembled. "Siria?" She flinched in his hold. "Sunshine, look at me. Come on. It's okay. I'm not upset with you."

Siria slowly brought her eyes up to his. She flinched again when her eyes connected with his. "I'm sorry, Sanji. I hurt you."

"It's okay. Really. You reacted out of fear and concern for me." Sanji stroked her hair. "I deserved to get slapped. That was your first time in a battle with us. Of course you were going to be scared. And I didn't help anything by charging in like I did. I should have put more thought into my actions before doing them."

"Really?" Siria looked at him, holding his eye contact more now.

Sanji nodded. He brushed away her tears. "No more crying now, my sweet little sunshine."

"I'm sorry." Siria placed her fingers on his still red cheek. His skin was warm from the slap. "How bad did I hurt you? Your cheek is red."

"It's nothing. It doesn't hurt at all." Sanji smiled.

Siria sighed. She laid her head on his shoulder. Her heart took sharp beats from hitting him. The scene replayed in her head. The sound of skin on skin echoed through her ears. "But I still hurt you. I hurt you like my former master did. I feel terrible."

"You're _nothing_ like _him_. He chose to hurt you. You only reacted out of fear." Sanji tightened his hold on her. "Don't you dare ever compare yourself to him. Do you understand me?"

Siria nodded. "Yes."

"Good." Sanji pressed his cheek to her hair. A few minutes passed before he asked, "Feeling better now?"

"A little," Siria said. "Can we stay here for a while longer?"

"Of course," Sanji said. "I'll stay here with you for as long as you want me to."

"Thank you," Siria whispered.

"You know," Sanji said. "You actually did rather well."

"I didn't do anything."

"You were still involved in the fight. Now you have actual knowledge of how our fights typically go."

Siria wrinkled her nose. "Great. I'm so looking forward to the next one."

Sanji chuckled, still stroking her hair. "You'll get use to them the more you're around them."

"I can't wait." She curled up closer to Sanji, forcing the thoughts from her mind as she breathed in his scent.


	13. Sabaody

Sabaody

Siria stared up at the large mangrove trees as the crew gave vocal expressions of wonder to their new surroundings. They were the largest trees she had ever seen, and the only trees with vertical stripes on them. Her eyes followed the tree's trunk down to the large roots that disappeared under the water. She blinked in wonder of how far the roots went down if they were able to hold up these massive trees. Did they reach the bottom of the ocean? Before she knew it the ship was dock at a root.

Still holding onto Sanji's hand he led her over to the railing. They descended down to the tree root. Bubbles came up from the ground. One lifted right in front of her. Her reflection distorted in it before it floated on up to the sky.

"So cool!" Luffy said.

Siria looked up in time to see Luffy jumping higher and higher on the bubbles. "How is that possible?"

"No idea," Sanji said. "It's amazing the bubbles can hold him. I thought they'd pop."

"So what are we going to do now? Are we all going into town now?" Siria asked.

"Considering how rough the people are here someone should stay with the ship," Nami said thoughtfully. "Now I wonder who can I find that's brave and strong enough to look after my treasure while I go shopping?"  
"I will, my darling Nami!" Sanji said.

"Thank you, Sanji," Nami purred.

Siria blinked. Having grown accustom to the crew, she knew that was coming the second Nami opened her mouth. Though she didn't mind. She wanted to stay with Sanji either way.

"I'm going to stay with the ship too," Franky said. "With our last battle I need to load it up on cola again."

"I might as well stay too," Usopp said. "There's nothing I really want or need here."

With it decided the groups split up. Those staying climbed back on the Sunny. Siria sat down on the mast bench with Sanji while Usopp and Franky got to work on filling the Sunny back up with cola. They moved the large barrels onto the deck before pouring cola into them.

"Are you feeling okay now? Do you need anything to eat?" Sanji asked.

"I'm okay," Siria said. "Those octopus fritters filled me up."

"They were good," Sanji said.

Siria nodded. "Yeah. I guess they were. Though I'm use to your cooking. You should make them someday."

"I might just do that." Sanji smiled. "We'll have to get Luffy to catch us an octopus one day."

"Think he's going to wake up soon?" Siria looked to Zoro.

"Who cares?" Sanji shrugged. "Let him do what he wants."

"I think I'm going to work with my shadows for a while," Siria said. "Are you going to leave the ship?"

"Not for a while," Sanji said. "I do plan on going into town to do some shopping later. But I won't go without telling you. Would you like to come with me?"

"I would." Siria nodded.

"All right. Go ahead and practice. I'll let you know when we're going."

Nodding again she stood up and stepped away from the mast. Exhaling she looked down to her shadow. On her command her shadow lifted up into four spikes. She lifted them as high as she could go before lowering them back to the deck. She then gathered her shadow underneath her and pushed herself a few feet off the deck. Then she spiraled her shadows and thrust them out like knives. Without warning her foot sunk into the wood. She grasped at the unexpected movement. Placing her hands on the deck she looked down to find that her foot didn't go through the wood. It went through her shadow. Her heart hammered. "What the heck?! Sanji, help!"

"Siria!" Sanji ran over to her.

"Hm? What's wrong?" Usopp asked.

"Hold on! I got you!" Sanji grabbed onto Siria's arms. He pulled her from the shadow.

Siria clung to him. "What was that?!"

"What happened, Siria?" Franky asked.

"I don't know." Siria looked over to him and Usopp. They had several empty bottles of cola scattered around them. They were sitting on large barrels while dumping in the cola in a third large barrel. "My foot just sunk. I thought I went through the deck but when I looked it was my shadow. I went through my shadow some how."

Sanji looked to the deck. There were no holes in it at all. Reaching out he pressed his hand on the wood to see if part of the deck was broken. It wasn't. It was as sturdy as ever. "That's odd."

"You sunk into your shadow?" Usopp asked. "How?"

"I don't know." Siria shook her head. "I didn't do anything. I don't think. It just happened."

Sanji hummed. "Perhaps it's something you can do with your shadow."

"But why?" Siria looked at him.

"I don't know." Sanji locked eyes with her. "Let's let it go for now. Why don't we go ahead and head into the town? You look like you need a break."

Siria nodded. Standing up she noticed Zoro was missing. "Where did Zoro go?"

"He headed off a while ago." Usopp grabbed another bottle of cola and poured it into the bucket. Tossing it to the side it clanked on the other bottles before they silenced.

"Oh," Siria said.

"You ready?" Sanji asked.

"Yeah." Siria nodded. They descended down the ladder and headed off into town. She examined the bubbles and trees as they walked. It didn't take them long before entering into the town. People bustled around. Some were walking and some were riding on bikes with bubbles around them. "Bubble bikes?"

"I guess those bubbles have a use here," Sanji said.

"I bet Luffy likes them," Siria said.

"He probably already bought one." Sanji led her over to a food vendor.

Siria continued to look around the town while Sanji looked over the fruit. Her eyes went from person to person. She wondered if they were civilians or pirates. Which ever they were she couldn't tell. From the pirates she knew so far pirates didn't seem to wear any particular clothes that would give away that they were pirates.

"Let's go," Sanji called.

Siria turned to find he had brought some fruit from the vendor.

"If you have much shopping to do you'll want to get some bubbles to carry your bags in," the vendor said.

"Bubbles?" Siria looked at the people again. Some were holding onto strings that led up to bubbles holding their shopping bags. "Wow. I never would have thought of that."

"You can use these." The man handed over a couple bubbles with strings.

"Thanks. How much?" Sanji took them.

"No charge for them since anyone can make them on their own," the man said.

"That's true. Have a nice day." Sanji walked off.

Siria followed him. They went to several more shops and venders before heading back to the ship. Usopp and Franky were done with the cola by the time they had arrived. They were sitting around a small box playing a game of chess.

"Get all your shopping done?" Usopp asked.

"Sure did," Sanji said. "And you won't believe what we saw. They have these bubble bikes."

"Bubble bikes, huh?" Usopp eyed the bubble packages Sanji was holding.

"People use these bubbles for multiple things. Let me put this stuff up and I'll tell you all about it." Sanji headed for the stairs. "How about some tea?"

"Sounds great," Usopp said.

"I'll take cola," Franky said.

"I'll help you." Siria followed Sanji to the kitchen. She helped put away what he had brought. Then she waited for him to finish the tea before heading back out to the deck. They sat down with their friends. She picked up her teacup and took a sip while Sanji told their friends about the bubble bikes. They were interrupted by the ringing of the transponder snail.

"That's probably Nami." Sanji got up and answered it. "Yes, Nami my sweet?"

"Sanji!" Chopper screamed. "What are we going to do?! It's terrible! There were so many flavors of ice cream! It's all our fault!"

"Is that Chopper?" Siria asked.

"He sounds upset," Franky said as they got up and moved closer.

"Camie's been kidnapped!" Chopper said. "We think it was by a team of kidnappers! Mermaids and fishmen get sold here all the time even if they haven't done anything wrong!"

"What?!" Sanji said.

"She's been taken! It's terrible!" Chopper said.

"Calm down," Sanji said. "You guys stay right where you are. We'll be there soon." He hung up.

"What now?" Siria asked. Panic settled into her chest. "Camie's going to get sold as a slave!"

"Don't worry, Siria." Sanji picked up the transponder snail again. "We know some experts. I'm going to call in the Flying Fish Riders."

Siria wrung her hands and shifted from foot to foot as Sanji spoke to the Flying Fish Riders. They agreed to help and said they would be there shortly. Moving back out onto the deck they waited and waited for the Flying Fish Riders to arrive.

"Where are they?" Sanji asked. His eyes locked onto the water. Finally they showed up.

"Hello, Young Master!" Duval said as his ride pulled up to the ship.

"About time!" Sanji said. "You're late, Flying Fish Riders!"

"We're the Rosy Life Riders now," Duval said with an attempt at a wink.

Siria watched the man as he went into a small rant about how he loved his new face and attempted to flirt with a couple women but ultimately struck out with them. She figured it was because of his personality. While Sanji made this guy look better he still was rather annoying to be around.

"Whatever! We don't have time for this!" Sanji said. "Camie's been kidnapped!"

"Camie's been kidnapped?" Duval said.

"That's why we called you," Franky said.

"Can you please hurry?" Siria said. "She's going to be sold as a slave."

"Sure. We know these waters like the back of our hands. Hop on." Duval turned his ride around.

"We need to split up, get the rest of the crew, and try to find Camie before it's too late." Sanji lifted Siria into her arms then jumped down to Duval's ride.

"Hold on," Duval said.

Franky and Usopp jumped onto the flying fish. They dove under the water before taking to the sky.

"All right! Hurry, Rosy Life Riders! We're racing against the clock here!" Duval said over his transponder snail.

"We're not going very fast," Siria said as she watched the others disappear in the distance within a few seconds.

"Why is this cow the slowest thing you got?! You're the boss! You should have the fastest ride!" Sanji kicked Duval in the head.

"Huh? Did you just call me handsome?" Duval asked.

"No! I did not! We should have gone on one of the fish!" Sanji snapped.

"No point in fighting about it now," Siria said. "They're already gone."

"Yeah. I know." Sanji sighed.

"Here you should look at this." Duval handed Sanji a piece of paper.

"Is this list what I think it is?" Sanji asked. His hands gripped the paper tightly.

Siria looked over his shoulder. On the paper he was hold was a list of people and prices. "What is that?"

"It's the starting prices for the slaves," Duval said.

Siria's eyes landed on the price for mermaids. "They're going to sell Camie for _that_ much?"

"That's possible. Though it's equally possible for it to even be higher," Duval said. "It all depends on who's buying the mermaid and how much money they have."

"That's terrible." Siria wrapped her arms around her body and shivered. The thought terrified her. Her eyes drifted to Sanji. His whole body was trembling. "If you need a cigarette you should have one."

"No." Sanji wadded up the paper and threw it away. "I said I wouldn't smoke around you and I'm not going to no matter how stressing this is."

Duval's transponder snail rang. He picked it up. "Yes?"

"We found her! She's at Grove One Auction house!"

"What're the plans for today's auction?" Duval asked.

"It opened at four so it's been going on for half an hour."

"That's not good!" Sanji said. "We have to get there fast!"

"Don't worry. There's plenty of time. Mermaids are a big ticket. They won't bring her out until the second half," Duval said.

"Well, just make sure you take the shortest route! This thing is freaking slow!" Sanji said.

"Calm down, Young master," Duval said. "I am the head of the team. When they told us where the mermaid is…did you see me change course at all?"

"No," Sanji said.

"I've been heading for Grove One from the start!" Duval said. "And there it is! Grove One! I'm the first one here!"

"This is the place, Reindeer." A Flying Fish Rider pulled in front of them.

"All right! Thanks!" Chopper said before jumping up to the tree root.

"We're not first!" Sanji punched Duval. He picked Siria up again. "Whatever. Let's go!"

Siria held tight onto Sanji as he leapt up to the grove. Still holding her he ran over to the auction house where a man stood. As he sat her down she wondered if this man worked at this auction house. She knew for sure he did when Sanji started talking to him.

Soon more of their crew showed up.

"You've got to be kidding me!" Sanji growled. "Camie isn't some object! She's a person! You can't sell people! This whole thing is wrong!"

"Sorry, but that's how it is." The man shrugged, carefree of the pain and torture he was part of.

Siria's stomach churned. "I don't feel so good."

Sanji took her hand. "Just breath. It'll be fine."

"Well, if they won't give her back." Franky lifted his hand up.

"Hold on! You can't do that! There are Celestial Dragons in there!" Pappag said. "And Camie is probably wearing one of those explosive collars by now!"

Nami walked away from the group.

"Nami?" Sanji asked.

"It's fine. If we can't take Camie back by force then we'll beat these creeps at their own game," Nami said. "Let's get inside."

The group followed Nami around to the front door. They climbed up the steps and entered into the room. A mix of perfume hit Siria the second they stepped into the room. She rubbed her nose. People chattered happily about the person who was standing on the stage as they entered. But that person was obviously scared. No one seemed to care as she trembled in her chains.

"This is sick! How can they do this to these lovely ladies?!" Sanji gritted his teeth.

"Check it out," Franky said. "Another Celestial Dragon."

"Lot's of nobility here," Nami said.

Siria glanced over her shoulder. The man was rather fat. He kicked a blonde man that was down on his hands and knees. A slave. She gulped and turned away. She didn't want to make eye contact with the Celestial Dragon at all.

"And here comes entry number sixteen!" the announcer said.

"And if we defy anyone of them the navy admirals will come running," Sanji said. They turned their attention back to the stage as if the Celestial Dragon was just an ordinary person.

The announcer was talking about the pirate captain that was currently being sold. Suddenly blood dripped down his chin. A woman screamed. The pirate dropped to the floor. The curtain pulled over the stage.

"What just happened?" Nami asked.

"He bit his tongue off," Sanji said. "He chose to die than live life as a slave. Got to say that might have been the better choice."

"Better choice," Siria whispered in wonder.

"The mermaid still isn't up yet," Franky said.

"Camie must be so scared," Chopper said.

"Just a little bit longer, then we can buy her. It's a good thing we have all that treasure from Thriller Bark," Nami said.

"We're going to buy her?" Siria asked.

"It's the only way to get her out of here," Nami said.

Siria looked up at Sanji. "But they're so expensive."

"Like Nami said, we have plenty of treasure from Thriller Bark." Sanji squeezed her hand.

Siria nodded.

"Hold on! We can't pay you back for all that!" Hachi said.

"Why would you pay it back? Are you Camie's legal guardian or something?" Nami asked.

"No, but…" Hachi said.

"Don't worry about it. Camie's our friend. And we're going to get her back." Nami nodded.

Siria turned back to the stage. Her heart thumped erratically when she noticed they had brought Camie out onto the stage. A gasp roar through the building at the sight of the mermaid.

"All right! Let's start the bidding at-"

"Five hundred million berries!" The fat Celestial Dragon jumped up.

"What?! We don't have nearly that amount!" Nami said.

"No," Siria whispered. The room was silent. No one moved.

"Uh, well, everyone seems speechless," the announcer said. "But I'll ask just the same. Is there anyone else with a higher bid?"

"Isn't there anything we can do?! Isn't there any other way? Sanji!" Chopper said. "This can't be happening! Camie's our friend! We can't just let her go!"

"This is bad. I never imagined this would happen," Sanji said. "We were counting on our money to solve this problem, but things just got worse."

"If it comes down to it, I'll take her by force and escape to the ocean!" Hachi said.

"Don't be stupid! What about the collar?! Camie's head will be blown off!" Pappag said.

"Then…we'll find the key!" Hachi said.

"Time's up! This incredible mermaid goes to the world noble, Saint Charlos, for the price of five hundred million!"

Siria watched as the man brought his hammer down but a larger bang happened behind them. She whipped around to find Luffy and Zoro standing there beside a knocked out flying fish. Wood from the broken door was scattered around the floor as well.

"Luffy!" Sanji said.

"Where's Camie?!" Luffy looked around. He spotted Camie on the stage then ran towards her.

Siria watched as Hachi dashed after her captain. Before she could comprehend what was happening Hachi's arms came out and grabbed onto Luffy. Several screamed erupted in the auction house before the sound of a gun went off. Siria's heart seized up when she sat blood fly through the air and Hachi fell down the stairs.

Then next thing she knew Luffy was walking back up the stairs with pure hate in his eyes. He punched the Celestial Dragon across the room. The people in the auction house screamed and ran for the door.

Gun shots rang out. One of the other Celestial Dragons was shooting at Luffy. Sanji leapt away from Siria. He kicked the gun out of the man's hand. The rest of the crew broke into a fight as well.

Siria drew in a breath. Her calmed her mind. She had seen them fight before. She knew how to fight herself. She could handle this.

"Hold it!" One of the workers stepped up to her. "Don't move!"

Siria didn't. She slithered her shadow out, under the man's feet, and pushed him over. His head crashed onto the floor. Her body relaxed a little. A bit of confidence filled her. She could do this. She could help her crew fight.

"What the heck was that?!" another worker asked. "What did you do to him?!"

Siria shrugged. There was no way she was going to answer that. A few more workers surrounded her. As they advanced on her she wrapped her shadows around their ankles and tripped them. They fell.

"Hold it right there!" a man said.

Siria turned to find a one of the soldiers pointed their spears at her face. Her heart skipped a beat. Before she could react the man flew away from him.

"Don't you ever point a weapon at her again!" Sanji hissed. He grabbed her shoulders. His eyes ran all over her body. "Siria, are you hurt? Did they touch you?"

"No. I'm fine. I actually took them down." Siria glanced over her shoulder.

Sanji looked as well. "I see."

"I actually did it." Siria smiled at him. "I'm getting better."

"You sure are." Sanji rubbed her head. "But don't get over confident. We have a lot to do left."

Siria nodded. A crumbling sound pulled her and Sanji's eyes to the stage. A white haired old man was walking out onto it while a giant was ripping through the back wall of the stage. "Who are they?"

"No idea. They're not workers from here," Sanji said. "Maybe they're slaves? But they're not wearing collars."

Siria didn't say anything after that. She just watched as the events unfolded before her. It was hard for her to comprehend what happened next. The old man addressed the mess before him. He apparently knew Hachi and didn't like that the fishman was hurt. Then one moment everyone was standing up and the next all the soldiers and workers from the auction house were on the floor. A touch of dizziness washed through her. She stumbled forward.

"Hey. Easy now." Sanji grabbed her and held her to his side.

"What happened?" Siria asked. Her head spun. She closed her eyes and took a couple deep breaths. The feeling passed.

"You about fell over." Sanji held her stand up again.

"I felt dizzy all of a sudden," Siria said.

"I think that guy did something." Sanji looked back at the old man. He kept his hold on her despite her feeling better. "There's no way everyone would pass out like they did for no reason."

"R-Rayleigh?" Hachi asked.

"No way," Sanji said.

"Huh? Who?" Siria asked.

"A man who use to sail with the former pirate king," Sanji said. "Dark King Silvers Rayleigh. He's a legend among pirates."

"That straw hat suits a fearless man like you." Rayleigh looked at Luffy. "I've been wanting to meet you, Straw Hat Luffy."

Siria blinked. She had no idea how to react to everything that was happening. This man called Rayleigh appeared to know something about Luffy's hat despite the fact they had never met. Things got even more shocking when the old man removed the collar from Camie's neck without hurting her, without the key, and barehanded. Rayleigh told Franky, who had just returned from finding the keys, to carrier her. Siria smiled. Their friend was free and wasn't becoming a slave. In fact all the people that were sold weren't going to be slaves. Franky tossed them the keys and they gladly took the collars off them. They gathered with the giant who was going to escape with them.

"Are they going to be okay?" Siria asked when Luffy and the other two pirate captains went outside to deal with the navy.

"Of course," Sanji said. "Just be ready to run."

Siria nodded. "How's Hachi?"

"I've stopped the bleeding for now, but we need to get him somewhere safe," Chopper said.

"Here we go." Rayleigh pulled the injured fishman onto his back then stepped up the stairs.

"How long are we going to have to wait?" Siria asked before the swords and the spears scattered on the ground started to lift up and fly through the air towards the exit.

"Who the heck is doing this?!" Sanji kicked a sword away from him.

"Is it a devil fruit?" Siria asked.

"It's possible," Sanji said.

The flying weapons stopped.

"Come on." Sanji pulled her towards the door. By the time they had gotten outside the three captains had the navy soldiers scattered.

"Wow," Siria said. "They made a mess of things."

Sanji nodded. Keeping a tight hold on her hand they headed down the stairs to join up with Luffy.

"Ah, there you guys are," Luffy said.

"Hey, look." Sanji pointed over to the Flying Fish Riders. They were shouting and striking a pose.

"They're so weird. I thought they left after we arrived here," Siria said.

"Looks like they're still here to help us," Sanji said. "I'm not looking forward to that."

"It's better than running away from the navy." Siria slipped her shadows over to some navy soldiers coming up on them. She wrapped her shadows around the ankles and flipped them onto their backs.

"What the heck? Who is that girl?" a soldier asked. "She wasn't with the Straw Hats on Enies Lobby!"

"She must be a new crewmember," another soldier said. "We'll have to report this."

"Just great." Sanji pulled Siria along. "Now they know about you."

Siria ran with him as Brook leaped into the air. The skeleton played his violin, putting some soldiers, as well as Luffy, to sleep.

"Stop sleeping!" Sanji punched Luffy on his head but the captain didn't wake up.

"So where are we going?" Siria asked. She spread out her shadow and tripped a couple soldiers that were about to fire on them.

"Good question," Sanji said.

"Let's head over to Shaky's," Rayleigh said. "You all can rest there until things calm down a bit out here."

"Good idea," Sanji said.

Siria looked back over her shoulder. The navy soldiers were still pursuing them. "We've got to do something. They're going to catch up with us."

"Let's use the Flying Fish Riders again." Sanji pulled Siria into his arms. Once more they joined with the Flying Fish Riders. With their help they managed to get away from the navy. They gathered together on the grove housing Shaky's bar and said goodbye to the Flying Fish Riders before heading up to the bar.

"Hey, Shaky," Rayleigh called. "You here?"

"Welcome back." Shaky opened the door. "I didn't think they'd find you so soon."

"Shaky, you got a bed we can use?" Rayleigh asked.

"That looks bad. Hold on I'll throw something together." Shaky headed back inside.

The pirates entered the building. Luffy went right over to the fridge and started helping himself while the rest of them sat together in a circle booth. Rayleigh laid Hachi on the two tables Shaky pushed together. Chopper pushed a chair to him and started working on his wounds again.

"That was intense." Siria leaned against Sanji's side. Her blood coursed through her veins. She wondered if her heart was ever going to settle down.

"You okay, Siria?" Robin asked.

"Yeah." Siria nodded. "Though I think my heart rate will never go back to normal."

"I'm just glad we got out of there," Nami said. "How you doing, Hachi?"  
"I'm fine," Hachi said.

"He got lucky," Chopper said. "That bullet missed his major organs. Though he's going to need several days of rest. And no swimming for at least two weeks."

"Right." Hachi nodded.

"That you all again for saving me," Camie said.

"Sure thing!" Luffy said through a mouthful of food.

"I've made some tea," Shaky said while passing out some mugs.

"Thank you." Siria took the mug from the woman. Stream rose up over her face. She blew on it before taking a drink. "So good. Do you think the Sunny's all right?"

"I'm sure she's fine," Franky said. "The navy's too busy looking for us to be concerned about the ship. Besides she's anchored on the other grove. If they were to look for her they'd look in the area of Grove One."

"That's good." Siria looked into her tea. "I was worried." She looked up when Sanji shifted closer to her. A smile curled on her lips when he locked eyes with her. She reached up and brushed a piece of dirt off his cheek. "You got a bit dirty."

"Thanks for removing it." Sanji smiled.

Siria nodded then turned to look at Rayleigh. "So my crew told me you were on the pirate king's ship."

"That's right," Rayleigh said.

"What?!" Luffy gasped. "You were on the pirate king's ship?!"

"Wait. You didn't know?" Robin looked at their captain.

"Awesome!" Luffy said.

"I was." Rayleigh nodded.

Siria exhaled. Her pulse had settled down in time for her to listen intently to Rayleigh speak about the time he sailed with the king of the pirates. Everyone was shocked when the old man revealed that the pirate king wasn't captured by the navy but had turned himself in because he had gotten sick and was going to die anyway. But she wasn't, and not because she didn't know much about the pirate king. Her mind was on the fact that this man had sailed around the world. He had seen and heard a whole lot. This man could possibly know about her, or someone like her. She could possibly get answers from him about herself and her abilities over shadows. So she waited for him and the crew to get done talking before she addressed him. "Um, excuse me, Mister Rayleigh?"

"Yes?" Rayleigh smiled softly at her. "What can I do for you, young lady?"

"Do you…" Siria hesitated before continuing. This man had surely seen her use her shadows while they escaped. No point in hiding it now. "You said you traveled around the world a lot because of being a pirate." She swallowed then lifted up her shadow to show him a sample of what she could do. "I have this ability to control my shadows."

Rayleigh's eyes widened slightly.

"Have you ever met, or heard of, someone who can control their shadows?" Siria asked. She wondered if she should tell him about the monster inside of her but decided to keep it quiet.

Rayleigh stroked his beard. "Well, I've never met anyone who can control shadows outside of the devil fruit Moriah uses. But only one of each exists in the world."

"It's…it's not a devil fruit," Siria said.

"I see. So you are an umbrakinesis user," Rayleigh said.

"Does that mean you know about her?" Luffy asked.

"Sorry. I don't know much," Rayleigh said. "I've heard tales of umbrakinesis users in the New World but never came across one myself. Honestly, I didn't think they existed."

Siria's heart sank. She was hoping for answers.

"Don't let that get you down," Rayleigh said. "Just because I don't know anything about that kind of power doesn't mean no one does. If you exist then others have to exist somewhere. Keep searching. I'm sure you'll find what you're looking for someday."

Siria nodded.


	14. Kuma

Kuma

Siria stared down at the ground as they walked along the grove. They just said goodbye to their new friends and split up with Rayleigh. The old man was heading over to get their ship and move it so he could coat it. They were going to meet up with him in three days by using a vivre card. That's when their ship would be ready to head for the New World. But her mind wasn't on that. Her mind was on herself and what Rayleigh had said to her. Stories came from somewhere. And so did she. She didn't notice she was falling behind the crew until Sanji spoke to her.

"You going to be okay?" Sanji asked.

"Yeah." Siria nodded. "I was just thinking about what Rayleigh said."

"Did it scare you?" he asked.

"A little bit." She lifted her hands and stared at her palms. "I just wonder if we'll ever figure this thing out. The world is so big. How much luck would I have to have to find my homeland? Or my family?"

Sanji placed his hand over hers. Her fingers automatically curled around his. "We will. Don't worry. You might not know where you came from but you know where you belong. And that's with us."

Siria nodded. "Yeah. And I'm glad I'm with you all."

"Good." Taking her hand fully in his, Sanji kept walking with her. "So what are we going to do for three days? This place is pretty big."

"I want to go back to the amusement park," Luffy said.

"Shut up," Sanji said. "We all know that all ready. And we're not going. We're in enough trouble as it is. We need to lay low for now."

"Are we going to find a place to camp out then?" Siria asked. "If the navy is looking for us they'll look in hotels too."

"That's a good idea," Sanji said. "If we try and get a hotel room someone will surely spot us."

Suddenly something big landed in front of them. It's landing shook the ground.

"What the heck?" Luffy asked.

"Who's that?" Siria stared at the thing that dropped in front of them. It was a very tall man with broad shoulders. He wore spotted pants and bear ears on his spotted hat. "A bear?"

"Crap. It's Kuma," Sanji said. His hand tightened on Siria's. "He's the warlord we fought back on Thriller Bark. This is not good."

"Kuma?" Siria asked.

Kuma pealed off his glove.

"Look out! Don't let him touch you with that attack!" Sanji shouted. "It's a shockwave!"

Kuma lifted up his hand. In the center of the palm was a hole. A glow came from it before a stream of light came from his hand.

Siria saw the light coming towards them but she couldn't move. Suddenly she was pressed against a firm chest and rushing through the air. When her senses clear she found it was Sanji.

He landed from his jump. "You okay?"

"Yeah." Siria nodded. "Thanks."

"What's going on?!" Nami asked.

"What was that?! Since when could he do that?!" Usopp asked.

"Hey! That wasn't a shockwave!" Luffy said.

"That was…" Chopper added.

"A beam!" they said together. Their eyes sparkled with joy at the beam.

"This isn't the time for that!" Usopp said.

"Bartholomew Kuma!" Robin said. "Not him again!"

"Coup De Vent!" Franky lifted his hands and fired on Kuma.

Kuma flew backwards, landing with a hard thump.

"Yeah! You got him!" Usopp said.

"He's down but he's not out," Franky said.

"Second Gear!" Luffy's skin turned red as steam rose from his body. "All right. We know this guy is strong. So let's go all out from the beginning."

"And this time is going to be different," Sanji said sitting Siria back on her feet. "Last time we were worn down from fighting Oars."

Siria swallowed. They had told her about their fight with that large zombie and with Kuma. Zoro had really taken a beating from Kuma but no one, except for the swordsman and Kuma, knew what happened between the two during their fight. Concern flooded her. She had seen Zoro wince before in pain. Her eyes fell to the swordsman. She wondered if he would be all right to fight again. At the moment he was standing strong. But she knew that didn't necessarily mean anything.

Kuma got back to his feet. He fired again only thing blast came from his mouth. The Straw Hats scattered again.

"Siria, you stay back," Sanji said. "This guy is currently way out of your league."

"Okay. Be careful." Siria nodded. She knew she wasn't going to be much help but she would help where she could. So she stood ready to defend herself as Sanji rushed forward with Luffy and Zoro. They landed their attacks that send Kuma flying backwards. Dust and dirt swirled around in the air from his rough landing.

"Yes! Did they get him?" Nami asked.

"They're so awesome!" Chopper said.

"Our enemy is a warlord. I doubt he'll go down just like that. And you can tell by their facial expressions that they know that as well," Robin said.

"Should they even be fighting then?" Siria looked at them. "If this guy is that strong?"

"It'll be fine," Nami said.

Siria turned her attention back to the fight. She wasn't so sure about that. Then, without warning, Zoro suddenly fell to the ground. "Zoro. He fell."

"Did he get hurt?" Nami asked.

Chopper shot forward. His body and muscles grew larger with his transformation just before he hammered his hooves on Kuma's body.

The rest of the Straw Hats jumped into help. Siria hesitated before she extended her shadows towards the warlord and wrapped it around his ankles. The man paused and looked down. She tried to flip him but his weight was too much for her. "I got him! He's too heavy to flip! Hurry and hit him!"

"Good! Hold him there, Siria! Franky Boxing!" Franky threw out a fury of punches before Kuma backhanded him away.

"Spider Net!" Robin crossed her arms over her chest. Several hands and arms grew out of the ground and formed a net to catch the shipwright.

Siria wound her shadow up around Kuma's body. He turned to her. Her heart jumped. Willing her shadows to pull his arms to his sides, she pinned him there. "No! I won't let you keep hurting them!"

Kuma moved his arms, pushing her shadows away.

"That's some move, Siria! Allow me to assist you!" Brook ran up the side of a tree. Leaping into the air he angled down with his sword out. His sword slid right into Kuma's head.

"Brook!" Siria shouted. "Get out of there!"

"Take this!" Usopp fired on Kuma.

Sparks flew from Kuma's body.

"What's that?" Siria asked.

"Huh? There's something wrong with him!" Chopper said.

"What? Are you telling me the explosions took him out?" Usopp asked.

"So that's it." Franky dusted himself off. "One of your explosives went inside his mouth. I think you've shorted out something inside his boy. His body may be tough but he still bleeds. He's the same as me. Modified all over with all kinds of weaponry, but underneath it all he's still human."

"He's a weapon?" Siria eyed the sparks coming from Kuma's body.

"Nami! Look out! He's got a lock on you!" Sanji shouted.

Kuma opened his mouth and aimed at the navigator.

"Ochenta Fleur! Cuatro Mano!" Large hands and arms sprouted from Kuma's shoulders. Robin's extended hands fisted and dropped down onto Kuma's head.

Kuma's attack fired inside of his mouth with a bang.

"All right! He fired his beam in his own mouth!" Usopp said. "He self destructed!"

"Sorry if I've caught you at a bad time, big guy, but I've got a storm warning to give you." Nami swiped her baton through the air. Lightning shot down from the dark clouds she created. It hit Kuma with a sharp electrical snap. "Thunder Lance Tempo!"

Kuma tilted backwards but held up his hand and fired again. His body turned another direction as he fired his attacks. The beams shot out, erupting against whatever they hid.

"He's gone berserk!" Usopp dove for cover when a beam came close to him.

Siria swallowed. "Come on, Sanji. Get him. Take him out.

Sanji kicked him over to Zoro who sprouted two extra heads. He sliced at Kuma before Luffy smashed Kuma with his third gear. Kuma's body sent out a massive wave of sparkles. He clicked and clanked before falling back to the ground.

"Did we stop him?" Franky asked.

"It sure looks like it," Usopp said.

"He looks like he could move again," Nami said.

"If he does then we're done for. I don't think I can even move anymore." Usopp fell onto his back.

"I'm so exhausted." Chopper dropped to the ground as well.

"We should probably defeat anybody we think we can. After all, they're going to come after us," Robin said.

"Anyway, what exactly this is guy?" Zoro asked. "Is he really Kuma? Or someone else?"

"If he really is a modified human then that would mean that he was based on a human who looks just like Bartholomew Kuma. I guess they could be twins. Or else they just found a super look alike," Franky said. "Whatever it is, I don't see how you could just create a human being."

"PX-4?" Sanji looked down at Kuma.

"What's that?" Siria walked up to him.

"It's on his body." Sanji pointed to the letters and number on the cyborg's body.

Siria tilted her head and took in what the cook was pointed at. "Some kind of slave number, maybe?"

"Slave number?" Sanji hummed.

"I've ever had one but I know of some slaves who did have them," Siria said. "It wasn't like this though. It was more of a brand identifying them with their owners."

"That's a possibility," Sanji said.

Siria looked up at him. He now wore a few bruises and several spots of dirt on his face. Reaching up she brushed some of the dirt off his cheek. "You're a mess now."

"Well, it's a good thing I've got you here." Sanji smiled.

Siria smiled back. A small warmth flooded her chest. She stared at Sanji for a few more seconds before having to look away.

"Let's get a little rest. I never thought we'd end up battling all out for our lives right off the bat," Luffy said.

"Rest would be nice but we should at least hide ourselves first. If someone else found us now they could take the whole crew at once," Sanji said.

"That's a good point. But just wait a little longer," Luffy said.

"Ugh, you all just really tick me off," a voice said.

"Who was that?" Siria asked.

Two figures jumped from a branch above them and land in front of the pirates.

"Who's that?" Luffy asked.

"Another one?" Siria looked at another man who looked just like the one they had just taken down. Beside him stood a heavy set man holding a giant axe.

"Hey, what have you done, PX-4? It takes enough funds for a whole battleship to build just one of you Pacifistas, you know!" the axe man said.

"Ah! He's got another one of those things!" Usopp said. "Don't tell me it's the real one this time!"

"Whether it is or isn't we don't have the strength left to fight another one of those things that's for sure," Sanji said. Holding out his arm across Siria's chest he slowly backed them away.

"Did he just say Pacifista?" Robin asked.

"It that the name of the guy we just defeated?" Nami asked.

"And who are you, broad axe?" Franky asked.

"Calling guys by the name of their weapons. There's no point asking me questions. 'Cause I've got nothing to say to the likes of you. I've got the toughest defense of anyone in the whole world. And naturally, that means my mouth ain't easy to open, either," the axe man said.

"You could at least tell us your name," Usopp said.

"I don't have to tell you guys anything," the axe man said. "Like I just said, I'm Sentoumaru, the guy with the tightest mouth in the whole world."

"So your name is Sentoumaru," Usopp said.

"Oh. By the way, I told you that because I felt like it. I wasn't answering your questions or anything," Sentomaru said. "Now then, get them, PX-1."

PX-1 held up his hand and fired on them with a beam.

Sanji grabbed Siria and jumped out of the way. "This guy's got beams on his hands instead of paws as well. Not that I want to think about it, but that means this is a third one. What's going on here?"

"What are we going to do? None of you are in a good position to fight again," Siria said.

"I think we should be worried about our lives rather than solving puzzles right now. We're going to end up serious injured if we get in another fight right now. And we haven't even met the admiral yet," Zoro said.

"Yeah. It's time for us to run," Luffy said. Another beam was fired. "But not together! We need to split up!"

"Running sounds good!" Usopp said.

"The three of us are the strongest of the crew," Sanji said gathering with Zoro and Luffy. "We each should take our own group." He looked at Zoro. "You going to be all right?"

"Just shut up," Zoro said.

"Sanji, take good care of Siria," Luffy said. "She's not strong enough to defend herself yet."

"I will. Come on, Siria. Let's go." Sanji ran towards Nami and Franky. "I'll protect you and Nami, my dear!"

"Thanks," Nami said. "Now let's hurry and get out of here."

"If you're ready to die, the play the bait and get us all out of here," Franky said.

"It's ladies only. You can safe your own self, panty man," Sanji said.

"Everyone! Meet back at the Sunny in three days!" Luffy shouted to his crew.

"There! The bridge!" Siria pointed at the bridge they had crossed over before getting to this point. A beam shot above them. The bridge crumbled before them. She looked over Sanji's shoulder when heard thumping footsteps. The second Kuma look alike was running towards them.

"Crap! He blew out the bridge!" Sanji said.

"Sanji!" Siria shouted. "That machine person is behind us!"

"Why did he come this way?!" Nami asked pushing Franky in front of her.

"Hey! Don't push me!" Franky said.

"Zoro!"

Siria turned to see Zoro on the ground when the sniper shouted his name. Standing over the fallen swordsman was a tall black haired man wearing a striped suit. "No! Zoro! Sanji! Who is that guy?!"

"Oh, crap! It's an admiral!" Sanji said.

The admiral lifted his leg. A bright light gathered at the bottom of his shoe. Light shot out at Zoro.

Siria's heart thumped hard in her chest. "Did he just control light?!"

"Yeah." Sanji nodded. "That's his devil fruit power."

"What?! This guy uses beams too?! We've got to do something!" Franky said.

"Zoro's going to die! Someone do something!" Siria cried. "Zoro, you have to get up! Usopp, help him!"

Usopp, standing closest to Zoro, fired multiple shots at the admiral but they kept going through him.

"This is no good! That idiot's at his limit!" Sanji said.

Siria gritted her teeth. She shot her shadows over to Zoro.

"What's this? Interesting," admiral said. His light brightened and pushed Siria's shadows away. "I thought Moriah had the shadow devil fruit." His eyes lifted to Siria. "Who are you girl? I don't remember you being with the Straw Hats before. You must be new to the crew."

"You leave her alone!" Sanji sat Siria on her feet and stepped in front of her. "She's got nothing to do with this!"

"If she's one of you then she's got everything to do with this," the admiral said. "I am an admiral after all. And you Straw Hats are pirates. I'm taking you all in."

Robin's hands sprouted out of the ground. She grabbed onto Zoro and rolled him away from the admiral.

"Oh." Kizaru's body turned into light. He shot to Zoro and slammed a foot down on him. "Sorry but he's not going anywhere."

"No!" Siria screamed when Kizaru moved to kill Zoro. Suddenly a white blur kicked Kizaru's attack towards the sky. The light vanished, revealing Rayleigh. "He saved us again."

"Usopp! Brook! Grab Zoro and run!" Luffy shouted. "Everyone! Think of only getting away! Right now, we can't beat these guys!"

"Let's go!" Sanji grabbed Siria's arm. "Franky!"

Siria looked back to see Franky readying himself for another attack.

"I'm using all my cola for one last attack! Coup De Vent!" Franky's attack hit PX-1 dead on. "How's that?! Did you feel that one, stupid bastard?!" He turned and ran to catch up with them.

They only got a few feet before a bright light blinded them. Siria heard Sanji curse under his breath before the light suddenly vanished. She glanced back to the fight. "Was that Rayleigh again?" She gasped when she saw the Kuma look a like running after Usopp, Brook, and Zoro.

"Oh, crap! He's going after Usopp's group! Franky! Take care of Nami and Siria! Go on ahead!" Sanji released Siria's arm and raced back to their friends.

"What?!" Siria turned back. "No! Sanji!"

"Go with them! I'll be fine!" Sanji shouted back over his shoulder.

Siria's heart hammered. Her lung seized up. The feeling of never seeing Sanji again gripped a hold of her. She couldn't bear the thought. It hurt too much. Her body froze in place as she watched Brook attempt to defend their friends. He was no match for PX-1 and went down with one hit.

"Siria!" Franky's words were a far distance from her ears as she watched Sanji raced towards PX-1.

"Siria! There's no time for this! We have to go!" Nami called next.

But Siria didn't response. She could only watch in horror as Sanji got hit by PX-1. "No…Sanji…" She tried to walk forward, back to the monster attacking her friends.

"Siria, don't!" Franky held her back. "You can't help him! You're not strong enough!"

"No!" Siria felt something snap inside of her when PX-1 grabbed Sanji and fired on him at very close range. Shadows covered her body, forcing Franky to release her.

"What's happening?!" Franky jerked his hand back. "Her eyes are red!"

"Oh no! Don't tell me Bran is taking control of her!" Nami grabbed her head. "Not at a time like this!"

The shadows gathered around to Siria's back. Two wings spread out.

"What?! Now she has _two_ wings?!" Nami shrieked. "What's going on here?!"

With a scream Siria shot towards PX-1.

"This is great! She's gone insane!" Franky said. "Sanji! Heads up!"

"Huh?" Sanji struggled to lift his head. His eyes went wide at the sight of Siria.

Siria ducked under a beam. Her wing struck through PX-1's body. His side sparked. Circling around she held out her hands. Using her hands she guided her shadows to PX-1's feet. She pushed him off balance. As he fell backwards his hand came up. A beam shot out. Hot pain shot through her shoulder when the beam hit her. Her shadows vanished. She fell to the ground. Sanji calling her name barely pierced the ringing in her ears. Her vision blurred. She watched as a dark blur moved towards her. The blur leaped up before a bright flash hit it and it crumpled to the ground beside her. Her vision cleared for a second before it went dark.

"Siria? Siria?!" a fuzzy voice called to her. "Sanji! Will you all get up?! We can't stay here!"

"Usopp?" Siria twisted her neck. Pain shot through her shoulder. With a whimper she curled into herself.

"Siria, you're awake," Usopp said. "I'm glad. But dang it! Why did you attack him like that?! It was brave of you but also stupid!"

"Attack?" Siria asked. "What do you mean?"

"There's no time to talk about it," Usopp said. "We have to get out of here. Chopper's lost it."

"Chopper?" Carefully, Siria looked around to see a large creature with familiar brown fur slamming its fists into anything and anyone it could. She sat up. More pain shot through her shoulder. Her head spun but she remained upright. "What happened to him?"

"I don't know," Usopp said.

PX-1 moved to attack them again.

"Wait, PX-1," an unfamiliar voice said.

"Huh?" Siria and Usopp turn around to the voice. A third Kuma look a like stood behind them. This one held a bible in his hand.

"Ah! Another one?!" Usopp said. "What the heck is going on here?! Just how many of these guys are there?!"

"So, you're alive, Roronoa," the third Kuma said.

"Thanks to your mercy," Zoro said.

"Huh?" Siria glanced at Zoro. "Then…is this the real one?" Her eyes then went to the third look a like. Her eyes fell upon the bible in his hand. Through the ringing in her ears she recalled someone mentioning a bible when they fought the warlord on Thriller Bark. "He's holding a bible like you all said he did back on that other island."

"This isn't the time for chitchat!" Usopp said. "None of that matters! We're going to die if we don't get out of here!"

"If you could take a vacation where would you go?" Kuma asked. He swung his hand out towards Zoro. With a pop…Zoro was gone.

"What…what just happened?" Siria an icy chill ran down her spine. "Where did Zoro go?" She looked around as if Zoro jump up and moved. She didn't see him. "He was right here a second ago."

Sanji cursed, pushing himself up. "He's gone."

"Gone. Gone where?" Siria brought her eyes back to Sanji.

"I don't know." Sanji gritted his teeth.

Siria turned just in time to see Kuma swing his hand at Brook. And just like Zoro the musician vanished. From the corner of her eye she saw Sanji leap up. He dashed forward, attempting to land a kick on Kuma but he got swatted away like a fly. "No…" She watched as Kuma turned to Usopp, his hand lifted. "Not again." Kuma swung at Usopp. Tears streamed down her face. The smiles of her crewmates flashed through her mind. "No…don't. Leave them alone." Usopp vanished. "You can't…don't take them away."

"Bastard!" Sanji shot forward again.

Siria's heart leaped into her throat. She knew what was coming next. As if moving under it's own power, her body shot up. She ran towards Sanji as Kuma swung his hand towards the one person she cared most about in the world. Her heart stopped beating. All she could see was Sanji disappearing like her other friends. She couldn't let that happen. She couldn't let Kuma take away another one of her friends, especially him. Kuma's hand got closer to Sanji. She leaped into Sanji's arms. "Sanji!"

Sanji wrapped his arms around her.

Siria closed her eyes. Whatever happened she was going to be with him. Wrapping her arms around Sanji's waist she waited for the hit to come. It never did. Several seconds passed before she could bring herself to understand that the hit wasn't going to come.

"Siria," Sanji said.

"Huh?" Siria peeked out from Sanji's chest. She saw nothing but blue. She pulled away from him more. The ocean appeared below her. She was laying on top of Sanji. "What? What's going on?"

"I'm not sure but we're apparently flying in some form of bubble."

Siria looked up at him. His head was turned to his left. She followed his gaze to find he was right. There was some kind of bubble around them. And they were flying over the ocean. She moved to tighten her arms around his waist. Pain shot through her shoulder. She whimpered.

"You're hurt." Sanji brought one hand up to her shoulder and gingerly felt it. "Looks like your shoulder has been slightly dislocated."

"Will it be all right?" Siria asked.

"It will be in a minute." Sanji moved again.

Siria was about to ask him what he was doing when more pain shot through her shoulder. The pain ran up and down her arm for a few seconds before it felt better.

"Sorry about that." Sanji rubbed her back. "I would have told you I was going to fix your shoulder but you would have tensed up and it would have hurt worse."

Siria nodded. She wanted another minute before looking up at him. "What now?"

"I don't know," Sanji said. "I've tried stopping this thing but nothing worked. I guess we're stuck in it until we hit something." He winced.

"We're in trouble, aren't we?" Tears gathered in her eyes. "We have no idea where we're going. And we have no idea what happened to our friends. Sanji…what do we do? How will we find them again?"

"Don't cry." Sanji tightened his hold on her and stroked her hair. "It'll be okay. I promise. We'll get back to the crew. The Sunny is still on Sabaody. They'll head back there. And we will too. I promise as soon as we can we'll head back to Sabaody and be reunited with the crew."

Siria nodded.

"Until then you just rest," Sanji said.

"I don't feel-" Before Siria could finish she felt a pressure on her neck. The world went dark as she closed her eyes.

…

Guilt washed over Sanji when Siria went limp in his arms. He stroked her hair over and over as if it would wash away the guilt. "I'm sorry, my sweet little sunshine. I have no idea how long we're going to be flying like this. It's best if you just sleep for now."

Sanji exhaled. He watched the sky above him zoom by as they continued to hurl wherever Kuma had sent them. He went over what happened to Siria when she attacked Kuma. Somehow she didn't remember it. He wondered what that meant. Did Bran take control of her again? No, that couldn't be it. If Bran did take control why would he attack Kuma and not escape with Siria? He had no clue. He could only wait and see what happened next. With a heavy sigh he closed his eyes, thinking he should get some rest as well. There was no way of knowing where they were going to land. They might have to fight again when they woke up. For Siria's sake he hoped they didn't have to. But if it came to it he would protect her no matter what. He closed his eyes. With an exhale he allowed himself to relax. He hoped that no one attacked them while they flew to wherever they were going.


	15. Island of Pink

Island of Pink

"Oh dear. Where in the world did those two come from?"

"I don't know. But she has a fever. I'm going to take her back to my place. Laying out here on the beach isn't doing her any good. We'll figure out who they are and why they're here later. Can you take care of him?"

"Of course. I would be delighted!"

Siria shifted at the strange voices floating into her ears. She wanted them to go away so she could sleep more. Her body ached like it never had before. She moved closer to the soothing warmth that was beside her. Hands appeared on her shoulder. They pulled her away from the warmth. She whimpered but was unable to open her eyes. Her body was heavy, from the fever she thought. Unable to fight it she allowed herself to be moved. Next thing she knew she was lying on something soft with something over her. It took a few minutes for her mind to register what it was. A blanket and a bed. She was inside somewhere. She opened her eyes to blurry vision. Her head was heavy with fever. She closed them again. A cool cloth found its way to her forehead. She opened her eyes again. Her vision was still blurry but she found blonde hair close to her. "S-Sanji?"

"Sleep," an unfamiliar voice said. "You're safe here."

Siria's eyelids became heavy as if she had no choice but to listen to the voice. As her eyes closed her vision became clearer. The person beside her wasn't Sanji. They had blonde hair with a muscular face and thick make up. Unable to register who this person was she allowed herself to fall asleep.

…

 _Siria gasped at the darkness that surrounded her. "No. Not now. Not again."_

 _"Oh, yes. You have become weak again. It's been far too long since I've taken control over you."_

 _"But that's…that's not what Sanji said," Siria said. The darkness swirled around her before gathering into a single mass in front of her. She eyed the mass before looking past it. Beyond Bran was a faded image of a field. "He said you took control over me back on Sabaody. What is that? That's never been here before."_

 _"That doesn't matter."_

 _"Bran," Siria said._

 _"That name," Bran said. "Why do you call me it?"_

 _"I've never called you that face to face." Siria brought her eyes back to him. "How do you know about it? You can hear what I'm saying when I'm not here. Can't you?"_

 _"It matters not." Bran circled around her. "All that matters is you're weak and I'm going to take control of you now."_

 _Siria stepped back from him. "No. I won't let you."_

 _"You don't have a choice." Bran lacked onto her ankle. He spread up her leg, taking over her again."_

 _"No," Siria whispered. Her heart thundered. "Sanji."_

…

"Stop it! Leave me alone! I'm not dressing up as a woman!" Sanji screamed as he continued to run from the men chasing him. The one called Elizabeth was still chasing after him with the dress in hand. "This is insane! Where the heck am I?! And where is Siria?! Siria!"

"I already told you," Elizabeth said. "A good friend of ours is taking care of her."

"What?! You freaks better not do anything to hurt her!" Sanji growled back at them. "Siria!"

A loud blast caused them all to stop running.

"What the heck?" Sanji turned inland. Smoke rose from the ground just before a familiar dark figure shot up into the sky. His eyes widened. He dashed towards her. "No! Siria! Crap! Why did she transformed?! Did Bran take control?! Or is she in control like back on Sabaody?"

Sanji's heart pounded in sync with his shoes on the ground. The only thing he knew for sure was Siria needed him. He had to get to her before something bad happened. "Hold on, Siria. I'm coming."

The pink around him blurred as he ran. Time seemed to slow down painfully. Finally he brought through the trees and came upon a town. His eyes shot up to Siria. She was hovering in the air, looking down at something before she dove. Sanji rushed to her. Rounding a corner he found what she dove for. Another man dressed in a dark blue dress was standing below Siria. The man launched up towards Siria. "No! Don't you dare hurt her!"

Sanji bent his legs and jumped to the roof of a house. He bounced off it and flew towards the man going after Siria. Spinning around he slammed his foot into the man's face, knocking him away from Siria. "Don't you dare touch her!"

The man landed easily on his high heels. "How rude. I was only trying to help her."

"Siria!" Sanji shouted.

Siria turned towards him. With a flap of her wings Bran sent Sanji flying back down to the ground.

Sanji cursed. With a spin he landed on his feet. "How can I get to her if I can't fly?!"

Bran angled Siria downward.

"Oh crap! I had to ask that!" Sanji leaped out of the way before Bran could have Siria slice him up with her shadow claws.

"Oh my," Elizabeth said as he and the others gathered around. "What is going on here?"

"I'm not really sure." The man who charged Siria shook his head.

"Look! I'll explain later! Right now just don't touch her!" Sanji said. He turned back to Siria in time to avoid her claws again. "Dang it! Bran! Let her go! She hasn't done anything wrong!"

"It matters not." A deep voice mixed with Siria's.

"So it's you. You can speak through her," Sanji said.

"I can," Bran said. "And I won't let her go. She is mine. She has always been mine."

"Shut up! You don't own her!" Sanji swiped his hand through the air. "I won't let you!"

"You can do nothing!" Bran snapped.

"I can too! Siria! Listen to me!" Sanji screamed. "You're stronger than he is! Don't let him control you!"

"What in the world is going on here?" Elizabeth asked.

"Just shut up!" Sanji said. "Come on, Siria! Listen to me! You can fight him! Don't let that bastard win! You can hear me, right?"

"S-Sanji?" Siria's eyes flashed back to normal for a few seconds.

"Yes. I'm right here." Sanji took a few steps towards her. "You're okay. Just come back to me now."

Siria closed her eyes. Her body relaxed.

"That's it. Just relax." Sanji took another few steps closer to her.

"Stop it," Bran said. "She's mine!"

"She is not. She's her own person," Sanji said. He reached out and pulled Siria into his arms, his hand stroked her hair. "I'm right here, Siria."

"Sanji." Siria's body went lax.

Sanji grabbed her before she could hit the ground. "I've got you."

"She okay now?" the man before asked.

"She'll be fine," Sanji said. "But I should get her inside."

"Of course. Come with me. My name's Indigo," Indigo said.

Sanji hesitantly followed the man. He scanned the area as they made their way to a small town nearby. Indigo lead him into a building with a heart shaped theme like the rest of the island. "This place is so weird."

"She can rest in here." Indigo entered into the bedroom. "This is where I brought her before."

"So you're the one who took her." Sanji walked in. He placed Siria on the bed. "That was really stupid."

"Considering what happened just now I have to agree," Indigo said. "But I wasn't trying to hurt her. I didn't know she would freak out like that."

"She didn't freak out," Sanji said. "She just has this monster thing inside of her. She's been working hard to control it. But when she's…" He trailed off. He didn't want to give anyone Siria's weakness.

"I see." Indigo grabbed the pale of water that was on the nightstand. He left the room for a moment before coming back. "Here's some fresh water. She had a fever before. I'll go make her some soup. She'll probably be hungry when she wakes up."

Sanji grabbed the rag. He wet it, wrung it out, and then placed it on Siria's forehead. Relief washed through him. He was glad he was able to break through Bran's control. Mindlessly he began to trace her face with his fingertips. Dirt had taken up residence on her skin from their fight with Kuma. So be brushed it off her. Soon his fingers found their way to her lips. His eyes locked onto them. He couldn't help but notice her lips appeared to be slightly fuller than he remember. His heart raced. He found himself leaning down to her. His lips were less than an inch from hers when he noticed what he was doing. Cheeks burning he jerked back from her. "What the heck am I doing?! She's like a little sister to me and I almost kissed her!" He shook his head. "This island is seriously messing with me."

Siria sighed then opened her eyes. "Sanji?"

"Hey, Siria." Sanji smiled. His heart jumped. He wondered if she woke up enough to know what he had almost did. "How you feeling?"  
"Tired," Siria said. "And hot."

"Yeah." Sanji nodded. "You have a fever."

"Sorry," Siria said.

"Don't be. It probably came from fighting," Sanji said. "And I'm sure out little trip in the bubble thing didn't help anything."

"That's right." Siria's eyes widened. She struggled to sit up. "The others. We have to get back to them."

"Calm down, Siria." Sanji guided her back to the bed. "You're not going anywhere while sick. And I'm working on getting us out of here. Unfortunately, I'm not making any progress. There're some really crazy people living on this island."

"Crazy?" Siria asked.

"Who are you calling crazy?"

The two turned to the door. Indigo was standing there with a tray in his hand.

"Who are you?" Siria eyed the man. "And why are you in a dress?"

"Because he's a freak," Sanji grumbled.

"Because I look so cute in it." Indigo winked.

"Uh." Siria tilted her head. This guy wore a dress because he thought he looked cute in it? She didn't understand.

"Just ignore him, Siria," Sanji said.

"How rude." Indigo walked over. He placed the tray on the nightstand. It held two steaming bowls of soup and two cups of water. "And here I brought you two something to eat."

"Um, thanks." Siria sat up.

Sanji took her pillow and placed it behind her. He then grabbed the bowls and handed one to her.

"Thank you." Siria took the bowl. She took a sip. "This is good."

"My own special recipe." Indigo winked. "But don't ask for the recipe. I won't give it to you."

"I don't want it anyway!" Sanji snapped.

"I'll leave you two alone for now." Indigo waved and left the room.

"Hold on a second," Sanji said. "Where are we? Are we still in the Grand Line?"

"Yes, you're still in the Grand Line. And this is the Kamabaka Kingdom." Indigo left.

"That's great." Sanji sighed. "At least we're still in the Grand Line. It shouldn't take very long to get back to Sabaody."

"But how are we going to do that?" Siria asked.

"I still have Rayleigh's vivre card," Sanji said. "We can follow that back."

"Where do you think the others went?" Siria asked.

"I have no idea," Sanji said. "I don't even know why we were sent here."

"Do you think they have a ship we can use?" Siria asked.

"I hope so. If it comes to it we can always steal one," Sanji said before pausing. "Although, I'm not sure if that'll actually work."

"Why not?"

"The guys here have some crazy strength," Sanji said. "Not to mention they're all dressed up as women. From what I can tell real women don't live here."

"Why would they do that?" Siria took another sip of soup. "Dress in dresses I mean. And why wouldn't women be living here?"

"I don't know. Some people are just weird. If there're women they look like men. Other than you I haven't seen a real woman yet." Sanji ate some of his soup. "They're so annoying. They're trying to put me in a dress too."

"I didn't know men did that," Siria said. "How strange."

"Very strange." Sanji nodded.

"So what now?" Siria asked.

"You're going to rest," Sanji said. "I'm going to try and get us a ship."

"You won't be gone long, will you?" Siria asked. She didn't want him to leave her.

"I'll try not to," Sanji said.

"Sanji!" a voice called.

A chill ran up Sanji's spine. "Oh crap!"

Siria looked over at the door. Another man dressed in a dress peaked into the room. This one had curly blonde hair. "Who's that?"

The man busted into the room with a light pink dress in hand. "I found you!"

"One of the freaks I told you about." Sanji guzzled the last of his soup before dashing for the window. He opened it and jumped out. "I'll see you later, Siria! You rest for now!"

Siria watched as Sanji disappeared out the window with the other man following close behind. She sighed then finished her soup. Placing the bowl back on the tray she took a drink of water before laying back down and falling asleep.

…

"Where's Sanji?" Siria asked. She glanced out the window. "It's been several hours since I last saw him."

"I figure he's still trying to get away from my friends," Indigo said as he tidied up the room a bit. Tons of fabric, mannequins, and a variety of half finished clothes were strewn about the room.

"I want to see him." Siria pulled her blanket up to her chin.

"How are you feeling?" Indigo walked over to the bed. "You look like your fever is gone."

"It is." Siria nodded.

"That's good." Indigo clapped his hands. "A friend of mine wishes to meet you."

"A friend of yours?" Siria watched as Indigo walked over to the closet.

"Indeed," Indigo said. "And your friend should be arriving at the castle very soon as well."

"The castle?" Siria asked. "You have royalty here?"

"You could say that." Indigo disappeared into a walk in closet. "Now let's see. We have to dress you up proper. It won't do any good for your man to see you in those torn clothes."

Siria's heart raced. Heat rushed to her cheeks. "Sanji's not my man."

"Oh?" Indigo stuck his head out of the closet. "Is that so? With how he was looking at you before, when you were sick, I figured you two were a couple."

"No." Siria shook her head. "He's like a brother to me."

"Is that so?" Indigo smiled before going back into the closet.

Siria gnawed on her bottom lip. Her heart was still racing at Indigo's words. _Sanji is only a friend. He really is like a brother. Then why is my heart racing?_ She looked around the room to try and distract herself. "You have a lot of fabric in here."

"I do. I just love making clothes. I'll move them out of here later for you," Indigo said. "By the way I have my own fashion line."

"Really?"

"I do." Indigo pulled out a light blue dress off the shoulder dress. "This is the smallest one I have. I'm going to have to fit it to your body. Think you can stand up now?"

"Yes." Siria hesitated.

"Come then." Indigo waved at a stool. "Step up here. If we don't hurry then we'll be late."

"Okay." Siria pushed the blanket away and stood up.

"Be sure to remove those clothes," Indigo said. "Such a pretty girl like you shouldn't be wearing such rags."

"Um." Siria twitched. This person was a man in a dress. She shouldn't undress in front of him.

"Don't stress, Sugar," Indigo said. "I won't do anything inappropriate to you. Just think of me as a fellow woman."

"I'm not really sure I can." Siria blinked.

"I'll turn around." Indigo turned his back to her. "There you go. Better?"

"I guess." Siria took off her clothes then pulled the dress over her head. The dress was at least three times her size. It would have fell off of her if she didn't hold it up. "I'm dress. Sort of."

"Don't worry. It'll fit like a glove when I'm through with it." Indigo produced several needles and thread. "Just hold still while I work."

"So, um, what exactly are you?" Siria asked as Indigo worked on the dress.

"Hm?" Indigo hummed.

"I mean you're clearly a man but you're wearing women's clothing and makeup," Siria said.

"I'm still a man but I have a girly heart," Indigo said.

"A girly heart?" Siria asked.

"That's right. A lot of men dress up in dresses on this island," Indigo said.

"Do they still like women?"

"Some of them do while some don't," Indigo said.

"I see," Siria said.

Indigo paused and looked up at her. "Do I make you nervous?"

"Maybe a little bit," Siria said. "But, the truth is, I'm not very social yet. I use to be a slave."

"Oh. I see." Indigo frown. "I'm so sorry."

"It's fine. Sanji saved me," Siria said. "He's helping me become my own person. I haven't been with him for very long but he's very important to me."

"I could see that with how you looked at him earlier," Indigo said with a chuckle.

"How did I look at him?"

"Never mind." Indigo proceeded to work on the dress. "It's not important right now."

Siria watched Indigo work. He seemed to be able to make the thread and needle work like magic. The dress took the form of her shape with in just a few minutes. "You're fast."

"I've been doing this for years." Indigo stepped back to admire his work. "Much better than those rags from before."

"Thanks. I guess."

"Take a look." Indigo waved at the mirror in the room.

Siria stepped off the stool and over to the mirror. A soft gasp passed over her lips. The dress hugged her form better than anything she had. She looked different too though she wasn't exactly sure how. "It's beautiful. Thank you."

"You're welcome. Let's go now. You'll have to wear your own shoes. I have none small enough for you to wear."

"That's all right." Siria slipped her sandals back on before following Indigo out of the room. She eyed her surroundings. Everything was in a heart shaped theme. Even the doors were heart shaped. But what caught her attention the most was the use of the color pink. Even the tree leaves were pink. They floated down around her. "Wow. There's so much pink."

"Lovely, isn't it?" Indigo asked.

"I guess so," Siria said. "I haven't been around a lot of pink."

"I'm sure you'll love it." Indigo smiled.

Siria shrugged. She watched the town and the people as they walked towards the trees. More petals fell down around them. Along the path she noticed the animals were also dressed girly, favoring the color pink. "I think I'm beginning to understand why Sanji has such a problem with this place."

"He'll come around," Indigo said. "My friends are determined to free him from his restraints. He'll soon find his own girly heart."

Siria hummed. She pictured Sanji in a dress with make up on. Her heart sunk. She really didn't want to see him like that. She liked him as he was. "How long have we been on this island?"

"A couple days," Indigo said.

Siria's mind wandered back to her friends. They had no way of knowing where they were. They didn't even know how they ended up on this island. Did that mean Kuma sent the others to other islands? If so, where? The world was so big. She hoped they were okay. And that they managed to hold onto Rayleigh's vivre card pieces they had. At least they would be able to get back to Sabaody with them.

"Careful."

Large hands landed on Siria's shoulders. She glanced up to find she was about to walk into a tree. The hands guided her away from it.

"What's wrong, Sugar?" Indigo asked. "You about hurt yourself."

"I'm sorry. I was thinking about our friends," Siria said. "I'm worried about them."

"Your friends?" Indigo blinked.

"That's right. You don't know," Siria said. "We were all on Sabaody. We were getting our ship coated so we could go to the New World. But we ended up getting into a fight with the navy because a friend of ours, a mermaid, was going to be sold to a Celestial Dragon. Luffy, our captain, ended up punching one of the Celestial Dragons."

"Goodness!" Indigo's eyes widened. "Are you serious? Someone actually punched a Celestial Dragon?!"

"I am." Siria nodded. "This particular dragon shot another friend of ours because he's a fishman. Then, after that, we ended up in a fight with this large guy and a machine like person who looked exactly like the warlord Kuma. They were really tough. We managed to take the fake warlord down but another one showed up. And then the admiral showed up. The one who controls light?"

"Admiral Kizaru." Indigo nodded.

"Well, he was about to kill Zoro, our swordsman," Siria said. "Luckily, Rayleigh arrived to help. But things got worse. As we were trying to escape the real Kuma appeared. One by one he made our friends disappear. That's how we ended up here. I can only assume that Kuma sent our friends to other islands."

"Dear me," Indigo said. "You have had a hard time. I can see why you're so worried. Not knowing where your friends are would be stressful."

Siria nodded. "That's why we need to get back to Sabaody. We were supposed to gather back in three days. Well, we were when we were still on Sabaody. I'm sure it'll take us all longer than three days to get back there. But I know our friends will be working to get back there as soon as they can." She looked up at Indigo. "Can you give us a ship to use? Please?"

"I'm afraid not. I don't have a ship," Indigo said. "If I did I would take you there myself."

"I see." Siria looked down at the ground.

"Don't fret, Sugar." Indigo placed his hand on her shoulder. "I'm sure you'll get back with your friends soon."

Siria nodded. "I hope so."

"Oh, look," Indigo said. "We're at the castle."

Siria looked up. She felt no surprise to find the castle continued the heart theme. Indigo opened the heart shaped gate and they entered. His heels clicked on the stone pathway. He didn't even knock as he opened the large door to the castle. Siria hesitated for a moment but continued to follow him. They went down several flights of stairs before entering into a large room. Another set of stairs led up to a large throne. It was overcast in shadows but she could clearly see someone was sitting on it.

"Miss Caroline," Indigo said. "I have someone for you to meet."

Siria swallowed. Her stomach spun. She had no idea what to do here.

"Oh my," Caroline said. "She's so darling. Is this the young woman the others have told me about?"

"This is her," Indigo said. "She came with Sanji."

"I see," Caroline said.

"It's nice to meet you," Siria said. She bowed her head, unsure if she should or not. "I'm Siria."

"Very nice to meet you, Siria," Caroline said. "That's such a pretty name."

"Thank you," Siria said. "Sanji gave it to me."

"Sanji? Your parents didn't give you your name?" Caroline asked.

"No. I mean, I don't know if they gave me a name," Siria said. "I was a slave before I came to live with Sanji and the rest of the crew. I don't know anything about my family or where I came from."

"I see," Caroline said. "Such a dreadful life that must have been."

"Yeah. Um, I don't mean to be rude but I would like to see Sanji now," Siria said. "Indigo said I could see him. He was supposed to be here."

"Don't worry. He'll be here any second," Caroline said. And as if on cue, Sanji came busting into the room. He rolled across the floor, hit the stairs, and stopped.

"Sanji!" Siria rushed to his side.

"Huh? Siria! Are you okay?! They didn't hurt you, did they?" Sanji sat up. He grabbed her shoulders and ran his eyes over her. His cheeks flushed red. "You're…in a dress."

"Uh, yeah." Siria nodded. She swallowed, her heart thumped erratically. Sanji's hands were gentle on her exposed shoulders but she clearly felt a tinge on her skin. _What's wrong with me? Its just Sanji. I shouldn't be nervous about him touching me._ "Indigo let me wear it."

"You better not be trying to convert her!" Sanji glared at Indigo.

"All I did was give her a proper dress to wear. And she looks darling in it!" Indigo smiled proudly.

"Sanji would look just a darling in this dress."

"He totally would, Elizabeth!" another person said.

Siria looked to the first person who spoke. She noticed the person was also the blonde man from before. He was still holding up a light pink dress. Behind him were several others. They too were men dressed in dressed and heavy make up.

"Anyway," Caroline said. "I've been waiting for you to arrive."

"Who are you, you bastard?" Sanji asked.

"It's so rude to call her a bastard. Call her Miss Caro," Elizabeth said.

"Are you the queen of this country?" Sanji asked.

"Queen? Please," Caroline said. She and the others laughed. "To be exact, I'm the queen stand in. Caroline!"

The gathered group cheered with excitement.

Siria jumped at their unexpected excitement. She grabbed onto Sanji's arm.

"A stand in?" Sanji asked patting Siria's hand.

Siria relaxed a little but kept her hold on Sanji's arm.

"Kamabakka Kingdom is ruled by the legendary queen Iva," Caroline said. "It would be presumptuous of me to call myself queen."

"I don't care if you're a sub or not, let me get this straight now," Sanji said. "I'm sick of this place! We want off this island!"

"All right, I got it," Caroline said.

"Huh?"

"However, you need to fight the strongest one of us and win." Caroline walked down the stairs. He had bright red hair and worn glasses. "How does that sound?"

"Deal! I'll take it!" Sanji said.

"Sanji?" Siria looked at him. Worry filled her. She didn't want him to fight.

"It'll be fine. I'll win this and get us off this island," Sanji said.

"Okay. Now that that's settled." Caroline winked. "Then you need to change into our traditional fighting costume."

"What? Fighting costume?" Sanji asked.

Elizabeth held up the pink dress.

"You have got to be kidding!" Sanji growled.

"If you want to leave you have to fight. And if you want to fight you have to wear our traditional fighting costume." Caroline smiled. "Of course it's your choice what you do."

"Fine!" Sanji grabbed the dress and headed for the door. "I'll change! But only because it'll get us off this stupid island!"

"Sanji." Siria watched him go.

"Let's go on outside." Indigo placed his hand on Siria's shoulder.

Siria kept her eyes on the direction Sanji went until she was led up the stairs. The group headed out of the castle yards and to an area with broken ground. A stream flowed through the broken piece. Siria took a closer look. The pieces had actually been cut. "Is this some form of stage?"

"I suppose you could say that," Indigo said. "This is where a lot of our fighting occurs."

"There he is!"

"He's so cute!"

"That dress suits him well!"

Siria turned when the others started speaking. Her heart sunk in her chest when she spotted Sanji walking towards them. She was right. She didn't like seeing him in a dress. He didn't look at her as he stepped to face Caroline.

"Cute!" Caroline said.

"Quiet! Shut up! I can't stand this much longer! I'll finish this with a single blow in a jiffy! And leave this stupid island!" Sanji growled.

"He's fighting Caroline?" Siria asked.

"That's right." Indigo crossed his arms. "He is the strongest of us here at the moment."

Siria twiddled her fingers as she watched Sanji closely. He attacked. Kicking his foot into the air he brought it down but only made contact with the ground. Caroline then jumped into the air. Siria's heart tightened when she watched the stand in queen touch Sanji under his chin. Words were exchanged between the two but she was too far away to hear what they were saying. Suddenly, Sanji seemed different. His cheeks turned red and his attacks weren't as solid. He kept holding down his dress as he attacked, which limited his kicks. "What's he doing? He's not attacking like he normal does. I don't get it."

"Seems Caroline is getting to him," Indigo said.

"Getting to him?" Siria looked at the man before turning back to Sanji. Her nerves increased. Something was happening to Sanji. She wasn't sure what but something in his eyes and his posture was changing. He didn't look like the man she had come to know. He was changing into someone else. Her heart raced. "No." She stumbled forward. "Don't. Stop it."

"Siria? What's wrong, Sugar?" Indigo asked.

"I don't like this," Siria said. "He's not…he's not Sanji."

"Of course he is," Caroline said. "All I have done is awakened his girly heart!"

The crowd cheered.

"No! Sanji!" Siria ran up to him. She grabbed onto his arms. "Sanji, stop this! This isn't you!"

"My dear, what are you talking about?" Sanji asked, his eyelashes fluttering.

"You're not you. You're someone else," Siria said. "I want you with me. Not this person."

"You should be celebrating, child," Caroline said. "He has finally-"

"No!" Siria screamed. Tears gathered in her eyes. "He can't be like this! I need him to be Sanji!" She tightened her hold on him. "Sanji! Please! Don't leave me like this! I'm scared! I don't understand this at all!"

"Siria, my dear." Sanji cupped her face in his hands.

Siria's mind went blank. All the warmth from her body disappeared. Sanji kept talking but she was unable to hear him. He didn't stroke her hair as he always did when she was scared. More tears poured down her cheeks. "Sanji…"

"What is it?" Sanji asked.

Siria opened her mouth but couldn't find the right words. Instead she brushed his hands off her. Shaking her head she took a few steps away from him before turning and running away from him.


	16. 3D2Y

3D2Y

"Sugar," Indigo said with a sigh. "You need to eat more than that. You're going to get sick again."

Siria hugged her knees tighter to her chest. Her eyes remained locked down on her blanket.

"Dear me. Your eyes are dark grey. That boy." Indigo sighed. "Maybe you should go talk to him?"

"Why?" Siria asked. "He's made it clear he doesn't want to…"

Indigo sighed again before leaving the room.

…

"Hey! Stop!" Sanji giggled as his new friends splashed seawater on him. Holding his heels in his hand he ran down the beach before climbing up on a rock. He sat down and stared out at the setting sun. Pink mixed in with the normal colors of oranges, yellows, and reds. "What a beautiful sunset." A news bird flew down to him. He took a newspaper from it before it flew off. "Oh, a news bird. How's my love horoscope today?"

The newspaper crinkled upon opening. Sanji scanned his eyes over the pages. His mouth fell open. His lungs and chest tightened. There, right in front of him, was the announcement of Fire Fist Ace's death. "What?! This…this can't be. Ace has been…"

"What's the matter?"

"Hey! Sanji! You bastard!"

"Huh?" Sanji turned. Before he could see who called him a bastard a hard fist slammed into his face. The world spun around multiple times before he landed. Sand kicked up around him, getting in his mouth. Sitting up he spit the sand out. "What the heck was that for?!"

"For you being an idiot!" Indigo cracked his knuckles. "Usually I'm with my friends on opening a man's girly heart, but in this case I can't condone it! How could you walk away from her like that?! Don't you know what you mean to that girl?!"

"Siria," Sanji said. He gritted his teeth. A painful ache stabbed his heart. He grabbed his head with one hand when that day he changed returned to his mind. Siria was so scared. And he did nothing to ease her fears. "I'm such an idiot. How could I let this happen?!"

"You're telling me you're an idiot," Indigo said. "She hasn't eaten much in days since you decided to ignore her."

Sanji cursed. Flinging his heels aside he jumped up and dashed away from the ocean. He only stopped for enough time to changed back into his normal black suit before heading on to Siria. He flung the door open to her current room. Guilt flooded him to see her sitting in a ball with grey eyes and damp cheeks. He cursed himself again before going over to her. He sat down on the bed and pulled her to his chest. His mind shot back to that day when he changed. The hurt in her eyes became fresh in him head. He knew what he had done wrong. Immediately his hand started stroking her hair. "Siria…I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to do that to you. I didn't mean to change. I didn't mean to cup your cheeks. You were scared because you had no idea what was happening to me. When you're scared I stroke your hair. And I didn't." He cursed. "I'm so sorry, Siria. I promise I'll never do that again."

Several minutes of silence passed. Sanji tightened his hold around her. "Siria, please, talk to me. I really am sorry."

"Sanji?"

Sanji pulled back. Siria looked up at him. "Yes. I'm right here."

"You…you're back." Siria looked at his clothes. Tears leaked from her eyes. "You're really back."

"I'm back." Sanji brushed her tears away before pulling her back into a hug. "And I'm never going to leave you like that again. I promise."

Siria nodded. She wrapped her arms around his waist and held on tight. "I was so scared. You were so different. I didn't like it."

"I know. It won't happen again. I won't let it." Sanji stroked her hair again and again and again. He let a few more minute passed before pulling away from her. "We have to talk about something."

"What is it?" Siria asked.

"Unfortunately, it's not good news," Sanji said. When her eyes widened and changed to dark yellow he quickly added, "The crew's fine. It's about Ace."

"Ace? Luffy's brother, right?"

Sanji nodded. "He…he died in the war at Marineford."

"What?" Siria gasped.

"Luffy's probably hurting a lot right now," Sanji said.

"We have to get a ship and get back to him!" Siria grabbed Sanji's arms.

"I know. Come on." Sanji took her hand. He helped her stand up, allowed her to slip her shoes on, before running out the door. They ran back to the beach where everyone still was.

"I see you two have made up," Indigo said. "I'm glad."

"There's no time for that!" Sanji said. "We need a ship! Now!"

"I already told you that can't happen," Caroline said.

"I don't care about your stupid rules! I said give us a ship! I have a promise to fulfill!" Sanji demanded. "I've wasted far too much time fooling around with you people! Our captain needs us!"

"With that excuse, candy, you're just trying to escape from this island. We won't let you do that," Caroline said.

"That's absolutely right!" Sanji turn his back to them. "I want out of this country that's completely devoid of women but for Siria."

"Hey, there's a ship coming towards the island," someone said.

"I-it's Iva! Iva's on that ship!"

Siria and Sanji glanced at the ship before looking at Caroline.

"Huh? Who is it?" Sanji asked when noticing Caroline's hands were trembling. "Hey, what's wrong? Is that person that great?"

"She's the queen of Kamabakka Kingdom," Caroline said. "Emporio Ivanko!"

"What? That name was in…She's the queer queen in the newspaper. How timely." Sanji, still holding Siria's hand, move them closer to the beach where the ship was pulling towards. "She was with Luffy so I bet she knows a lot."

A tall poufy haired woman appeared at the top of the stairs. She looked down over the people gathered before descending towards the island. "It's been a while."

"She's so tall," Siria said.

"I can't believe it. She's my type!" Sanji's nostrils curled outward.

Siria giggled. "You really are back to normal."

"No, wait, wait!" Sanji dropped to his knees. "She's here because she's a queer, too. I almost fell for it."

"Who are you?" Iva stepped in front of them.

"I am…Her breasts are sticking out. Her butt is so tight. No, I won't be fooled." Blood ran from Sanji's nose.

"Yes. Definitely back to normal." Siria nodded.

"Do you want something from me, candy boy?" Iva asked.

"Yeah, I have a lot of questions for you! First, what's your favorite type of man?! No, I mean, about Luffy," Sanji said.

"Luffy. You mean Straw Boy?" Iva looked them over.

"Bingo! So you were are the navy headquarters with him. Luffy, you're so lucky! I mean you guys must have been through a lot. Tell me everything. My lady…" Sanji knelt down and held out his hand.

Iva reaches for him then suddenly her fingernails grew longer. She jammed then into her body. Suddenly her body changed. She became broader. She became a man. "Who are you?"

"So you're a guy too?" Siria asked.

"Blast it! I knew it was coming! Screw you!" Sanji screamed.

"And how do you know Straw Boy?" Iva asked.

"We're part of his crew," Sanji said.

"His crew?" Iva asked. With a snap of his fingers he was handed a small stack of papers. He held one by one until he revealed Sanji's bounty poster. "And this is you?"

"No!"

"See? You're not in these posters! And neither is she!" Iva said. "Then there's no proof that you're two of Straw Boy's crew."

"I told you that we are!" Sanji slapped the newspaper. "Siria recently joined so she doesn't have a bounty poster yet! Now tell me how Luffy is doing now, you queer king! I know that you were with him from the newspaper!"

"Then this is you?" Iva held up Sanji's bounty poster again.

"I said that it's not…it's not but it is…" Sanji drops to his knees in despair. "That name is mine."

"Why are you struggling so much?" Iva asks.

Sanji coughs blood. "That's…me! That is me! That weird guy on that poster is definitely me so…"

"No, it looks nothing like you," Iva said.

"Then don't make me say it! I threw up blood, you idiot!" Sanji snapped.

"It's no use. Even if there's only zero point one percent, as long as there is a chance that you're a puppet from the navy or government I won't tell you any of the information concerning Straw Boy," Iva said.

"I understand. Then let us borrow a ship. We're going to the meeting spot," Sanji said.

"I won't give you a ship." Iva said.

"Then we'll swim!" Sanji said.

"What did you just say?! So you're not just saying that you're his crew! I have no choice. You've touched my heart. For the sake of your passion, I'll tell you what happened to Straw Boy. Or not! Heehaw!" Iva spread out his arms and laughed.

"So you won't tell him?"

"You fooled us there!"

"Iva!"

"Shut up, you idiots!" Sanji drops to his knees.

"Sanji," Siria said. "This really instead getting us anywhere."

"I know." Sanji sighed.

"Looks like his defenses are down."

"Now's the chance! Dress him up with the sweets dress!"

"I'll never wear it again! Back off! I'm a true man who loves ladies! Stay away from me, idiots!" Sanji ignored them when they booed and turned back to Iva. "Hey, so your name is Iva, right? I decided to steal a ship because I'm a pirate. You got to fight me one on one."

"All right." Iva nodded.

"Stand back, Siria," Sanji said.

"You're really going to do this again?" Siria asked.

"It'll be fine." Sanji guided her a few steps away before going back to Iva.

…

"He's going to get beat again, isn't he?" Siria asked when Indigo appeared at her side. The battle got underway. Sanji released his typical attacks. "I mean, Caroline was just a stand in. And Sanji had no chance against him. This Iva is your leader. That means he's the strongest her, right?"

"I'm afraid so," Indigo said. "But it'll be over quickly. And that boy of yours clearly has a strong body. He won't get hurt too much."

"H-he's not my boy!" Heat rushed to Siria's cheeks.

Indigo chuckled. "He's your friend, right?"

"Yeah." Siria nodded. And like Indigo said, the battle ended shortly after their conversation. She ran over to Sanji and knelt beside him. "Sanji."

"I'm fine." Sanji brushed blood from his chin.

"Okay. I'll tell you how Straw Boy is doing," Iva said.

"Really?" Siria asked.

"Why did you change your mind?" Sanji asked.

"Because the whole world knows about it now." Iva tossed a newspaper on the ground. "I wonder what he's thinking."

"It's in today's newspaper?" Sanji opens it and gasps. "Luffy?"

"What's he thinking?" Siria asked. She barely heard Iva leave to take care of a call as she stared at their captain on the newspaper. Luffy was standing with his hat over his chest and his eyes closed. Behind him was some of the destruction the war had caused. But what caught her attention the most was the mark on his arm. It was of a 3D crossed out with a 2Y under it. She knew he didn't have any tattoos. "That mark on his arm."

"Yeah. I noticed it too." Sanji nodded. "He doesn't want to meet back up in three days. He wants to meet back up in two years."

"But why?" Siria asked. "Why for you years?"

"I can only assume it has to do with getting stronger," Sanji said. "He lost his brother after all. He couldn't protect Ace. And we were so weak when fighting those guys back on Sabaody."

Siria sat down beside him. "I see. What are we going to do now?"

"Two years, huh?" Sanji murmured.

"What's going on?" Iva, coming back, bounced around them. "Why are you two just sitting there like that?"

Sanji didn't answer. He remained staring up at the sky.

"Well, it's getting late," Iva said. "I'm sure you two are hungry. Let's go back to the castle."

"Sanji." Siria shook his shoulder.

"I heard." Sanji stood up.

Siria took his hand when he offered it. The warmth of his hand spread through her body. It made her heart race. They walked back to the castle in silence. They followed Iva into a large dinning room. She sat down when Sanji pulled out a chair for her. "Thank you."

Sanji sat down beside her. A few minutes later food was brought out to them.

"Hey, what was it you saw in the newspaper?" Iva asked. "You got so calm all of a sudden after looking at the newspaper."

"I received Luffy's message because it's exclusively for his friends. If you don't believe that we're his friends, then I'm not going to tell you," Sanji said.

"This guy's annoying!" Iva said.

Siria took a bite of food. An indescribable, delicious flavor washed over her tongue. Strength flooded her body. "It's so good."

"You're right. Hey, who made this meal?" Sanji asked.

"Oh, you have quite a discriminating palate," Iva said.

"It tastes so good and oddly, I feel like I'm overflowing with energy," Sanji said.

"Come to think of it," Siria said. "I felt the same way when Indigo first fed me."

"I'm not surprised. It is, after all, a dish of aggression," Iva said. He jumped from his chair and into a spotlight. "There are a lot of chefs who can make that on this island."

"Yes!"

"Yes!"

"Where did that spot light come from?" Siria asked.

Iva spun away as a curtains opened, revealing his friends striking poses. "Look at the beautiful tough bodies of these candies. And their gentle hearts. The candies grew like this by eating the dish of aggression. What you eat is important for your condition, physique, and personality. It builds the whole human body. If all the people in the world drink milk everyday there'll be less crime. Don't you agree? So it's good to be aggressive."

"Food builds that body? I never thought of it that way," Sanji said. "I can help them building their bodies with daily meals. But besides that, what'll I do if Nami-san and Robin-chan get sexier than they are now?!"

Siria frowned. "That's why you want to do that?"

"Uh, well, no," Sanji said with a nervous chuckle. "Of course their health comes first. And what's with the frown?"

"Nothing." Siria turned her attention back to her plate. Confusion floated through her head. She had no idea why she reacted like that. She knew Sanji always said things like that about Robin and Nami.

"What should we do with this guy?" Iva asked.

"What should I do?! I'm burning with passion! Teach me how to cook the dish of aggression!" Sanji said.

"The answer is no!" Iva nails Sanji with his shoes.

Sanji shot through the air. He landed with a thud before sitting up. "Ouch."

"That was very wishful thinking. This 99 vital recipe is a part of the new kama kempo techniques, training for married life. I can't just teach it to a nobody like you." Iva held a scroll in his hand. He pointed his finger at Sanji. "If you wanna learn it, you got to have a girlish heart and learn the new kama kempo."

"No way!" Sanji stood up. "I was born to become friends with the ladies. I was born to love ladies."

"Gah! Heehaw!" Iva cheered with the others. "You're quite a reasonable man. I like you. Okay, I'll give you a chance."

"A chance?" Sanji asked.

"I'll hand out the recipes to 99 grand masters of the new kama kempo on this island. If you're a real pirate, get all the recipes from them. However, every new kamas on this island will try to put this sweet dress on you day and night." He holds up a light pink dress. "I wonder if you can maintain your manhood."

"Not again." Siria groaned.

"Sanji!"

"We won't let you sleep!"

"Now that's not fair," Siria said. "You all out number Sanji. And everyone needs their rest."

"It's so cute how worried you are about him," Iva said. "Are you his girlfriend?"

"Wh-what? N-no, I'm not." Siria flushed.

"Then why are you blushing?" Iva leaned closer to her.

"Leave her alone," Sanji said. "She's like a sister to me."

"Is that so?" Iva rubbed his chin.

"The sweet dress." Caroline took the dress from Iva and danced around with it. "I'll bring back the exciting feelings of wearing skirts, Sanji. It's nice to be girly."

"You vs. the home of the new kama kempo!" Iva pointed at Sanji. "If you can win this fight, I'll give you a ship, too. You can have it all! So what do you say? I can't hear your answer. Does that mean you give up? Yeah, if you lose…"

"When I win…when I win all of them, I bet I'll be much stronger than I am now." Sanji said. "I accept the challenge."

"Great! We won't go easy on you!" Iva said.

"I'm looking forward to it," Sanji said. "All right! Let's do this."

Siria sighed heavily as the residence of this island moved in to attack Sanji again.

"Don't worry, Sugar." Indigo placed his hand on her shoulder. "He chose to do this. He'll be fine." He leaned in closer to her ear and whispered, "I promise I'll help him get rest. He can stay in my house along with you."

"Really?" Siria's hopes rose. "We're going to be here for two years. Won't we bother you?"

Indigo nodded. "Of course it's fine. You won't be a bother at all. I'll enjoy the company."

"Thank you," Siria said. "We'll help out around the house as much as we can."

"Don't worry about it." Indigo waved his hand.

"So what's your story?" Iva walked over to the table and sat down. "To be honest, you don't look like that much of a fighter."

"I'm not really," Siria said. "I have some fighting skills now thanks to the Straw Hats. But I am way behind them."

"But you appear to have some skills." Iva propped his elbow on the table and rested his chin on his fist.

"What do you mean?" Siria blinked.

"I have been informed of that shadow thing you did," Iva said.

"Oh." Siria slumped in her chair. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to cause trouble."

"So what is it? A devil fruit?" Iva asked.

"No." Siria shook her head. "I don't know what it is." She told him her story. "And that's it."

"I see." Iva nodded. "Such a shame you don't know anything about it."

"Do you?" Siria asked.

"I'm afraid not. Now I could be wrong, but it sounds more like a lack of control than anything else," Iva said.

"We've talked about that before. I'm trying to get control over Bran, but I don't really know how," Siria said.

"I don't think they're pushing you hard enough," Iva said.

"What are you saying?" Indigo asked.

"Straw Boy is rather strong," Iva said. "But he's also very kind. Too nice to really train someone hard like you. And I'm sure your entire crew has a soft spot for you."

"You think so?" Siria asked.

"So here's what's going to happen." Iva pointed at Siria. "We're going to train you."

"What?" Siria asked.

"You heard me, candy girl," Iva said. "We're going to push you like never before."

"Hold on a second, Iva," Indigo said. "She's not-"

"I already know what you're going to say." Iva gave Indigo a wave of dismissal. "Don't worry. I'll personally work with her. So she won't be over worked. However, I'm not going to go easy on her. She needs to become stronger if she's going to be a part of Straw Boy's crew, especially if they're going to the New World in two years."

"I can understand that, but-" Indigo started.

"It's okay, Indigo." Siria held up her hand to stop him. "I understand Iva's point of view. Though I'm still not as skilled as the rest of the crew I know I'm a weakness to them. And I want to become stronger. I don't want to risk hurting them when I lose control of myself. And I want to be able to go to the New World and find answers to my past. Rayleigh suggested I might find my answers there. I want to do this."

Indigo sighed. "All right."

"Good." Iva nodded. "Then we'll start right now."

"Okay." Siria nodded. Her hands trembled but she clenched her fists. She wasn't going to back down from this. She had to do this. She had to get stronger for her crew, for herself.

"Then lets get started." Iva headed for the door.

Siria followed.

"Whoa! Hold on! Where are you taking her?!" Sanji jumped in their way.

"I'm going to train her," Iva said.

"Are you insane?!" Sanji shrieked. "She's not like me! She won't be able to handle your crazy strength!"

"Sanji," Siria said.

"Don't worry, candy boy," Iva said. "I won't do anything to hurt your girlfriend."

"She…she's not my girlfriend!" Sanji's face flushed.

Siria's lips twitched into a small frown. She shook her head to release it. Sanji had spoken the truth. It shouldn't bother her. She _wasn't_ going to let it bother her. "It's okay, Sanji. I want this."

"Siria." Sanji looked at her.

"I'll be fine. We both know I need to get stronger." Siria looked at her hands. "I have to get better control over Bran. I don't want to hurt anyone."

Sanji took her hands in his.

Siria's heart jumped. Ignoring the warmth flowing from his touch into her body, she forced herself to look into his eyes.

"Okay." Sanji sighed. "But take it easy." He glared at Iva. "If you hurt her I'll kill you."

"Oh," Iva said. "So protective."

"Come get me if you need me." Sanji looked back at Siria.

Siria nodded. With a squeeze to his hands she followed Iva and Indigo outside.

"All right!" Iva spun around. "First of all we need to strengthen up those puny legs of yours."

"Puny?" Siria looked at her legs.

"They look like toothpicks. Indigo, you can accompany us on this," Iva said. He turned and started running. "So let's go!"

"We're just running?" Siria asked.

"Build up," Indigo said. "Iva is going to teach you our techniques. You need strong legs for that."

"Oh."

"Let's go." Indigo followed after Iva.

Siria followed him. They ran and ran and ran and then ran some more. Her chest heaved up and down. And hour into it she wanted to fall down onto the ground and stay there, but they kept pushing her. She had lost count of how many times they had passed the castle. Her body finally gave up when the moon rose above the horizon. She crashed to the ground. Her legs throbbed. "I can't…take it…anymore."

"You are rather weak," Iva said. "But no worries. I'll have you whipped into shape in no time at all."

"Wonderful," Siria panted. "Thanks a lot. I'll do my best."

"You poor thing." Indigo waved a fan at Siria.

"Go ahead and take her home," Iva said. "We'll start bright and early tomorrow."

Siria whimpered. She wasn't looking forward to that at all.

"Let's go." Indigo pulled Siria into his arms. He carried her back to his home.

"I think my legs are going to fall off," Siria said.

"They won't. All you need is a hot bath and a good night's sleep," Indigo said.

"What about Sanji?" Siria glanced over the moonlight island. In the distance she could see he was still fighting.

"Don't worry. I'll go tell him he can find refuge at my place once you're in the bath," Indigo said.

"Thank you." Siria sighed. A few minutes later they entered into Indigo's house. He took her to her room then into her private bath. "I can take it from here."

"Are you sure?" Indigo sat her on her feet.

Siria winched at the pain shooting through her legs. "I'm sure."

"Well, all right then. I'll leave you to it." Indigo left.

Siria limped to the tub. Sitting on the edge she turned on the water. When the tub was full of steaming water she stripped her clothes off and slipped into the water. Her muscles relaxed. "That's much better."

Siria was brushing out her hair when a tap came on her window. She went to it. Pushing back the curtains she found Sanji standing there, his face and clothes covered in dirt and blood. His face held multiple bruises and scratches. She winced and opened the window. "Sanji! Are you okay?"

"Yeah. I'm fine." Sanji entered the room then closed the window. "Indigo said I could come here, but come to your window."

"Sit down." She grabbed his wrist.

"I'm fine, really." Sanji pulled her back to him.

Siria glanced up at him.

"Your eyes are yellow again." Sanji stroked her hair. "You don't have to worry. I can handle this. All I need right now is a shower and some rest."

"Okay. You can use my shower," Siria said. "There's a bathtub too. I'll see if I can find some clothes for you to wear."

Sanji nodded. He stepped into the bathroom. "What is with these people and using hearts in their decorations?!"

Siria giggled and left the room. She reached the living room just as Indigo appeared. "Good timing."

"You seem to be feeling better." Indigo closed the door.

"The bath helped but I'm still rather sore. I'm going to bed soon," Siria said. "I'm just looking for some night clothes for Sanji."

"Oh? Well, let me see what I have." Indigo headed down the hall.

Siria followed him and stood at his bedroom door. Like all the rooms it was decorated in hearts. His bed was bigger than hers and without a canopy. Sitting on his nightstand was a picture of him and a woman. He was dressed like a man in it. "May I ask who this woman is?"

"She was my wife," Indigo said from his closet.

"Was?"

"She died eleven years ago." The sadness dripped from Indigo's voice. "She and our baby died in childbirth."

"I'm sorry."

"I am to. I really wanted a child, but it wasn't meant to be." Indigo sighed. "Not long after that I moved here."

"Did she know you dressed as a woman?" Siria asked.

"Of course." Indigo stepped out of the closet with a long nightgown in hand. "I never hid that from her. In fact she loved dressing me up." He laughed. "I miss her a lot but we have a lot of fun times too. Your boy can wear this. It's the only thing I have for him."

"Thank you." Siria took the gown. "He won't be happy but it'll do."

"Well, I guess I'll just have to make him something to wear," Indigo said.

"Do you think I could watch you work someday?" Siria asked.

"That would be fine with me. You'll have to get a break from Iva and training though," Indigo said.

"I'm sure I can. A person needs a break from training after all. If you don't take breaks you can hurt yourself," Siria said.

"That's correct. You go on now." Indigo winked at her. "You'll need plenty of rest for tomorrow."

"Thank you, Indigo." Siria smiled then went to her room. She knocked on the bathroom door. "I have you something to wear. I don't think you'll like it, but Indigo said he'll make you clothes."

The door opened.

Siria passed it through the door then went to her bed. Sitting there she massaged her legs with some lavender lotion to help them relax more. A few minutes later, and several muffed curses from Sanji, he emerged from the bathroom in the gown. She bit her lip to keep from laughing. The gown was way too big for him. It would have fallen off him if he didn't hold it up.

"What's wrong with the people who live here? They're nothing but muscled monsters," Sanji growled.

"At least they have given us a place to live while we wait to return to our crew," Siria said.

"Yeah, yeah." Sanji turned out the light and crawled into bed with her. "How did your training go today?"

"It wasn't too bad," Siria said. "All we did was run. I still feel like my legs are going to fall off. But I'll survive."

"As long as they don't hurt you," Sanji said.

"It'll be fine." Siria rolled onto her side to face him.

"I know." Sanji pulled the covers over her shoulder. "Get some sleep now."

"Good night, Sanji." Siria nodded.

"Good night, Siria."

Siria closed her eyes.

…

"Are you ready to start today's training?" Iva asked.

"I am." Siria nodded. She looked around. They were standing in the middle of an area void of buildings and trees. "Are we not running today?"

"No, we're not," Iva said. "We're going to work on your shadows. So show me what you can do."

"Okay." Siria blinked. She pulled her shadow up around her, manipulating it into different things before creating a few shadow animals.

"Interesting." Iva stroked his chin. "Now show me your wings."

"My wings?" Siria looked at him.

"Yes. I want to see them," Iva said.

"Okay." Siria pulled her shadows to her back. Her wings unfurled.

"Now I want you to keep them in place while we fight," Iva said.

Before Siria could feel confused about the man's words Iva charged at her. She barely managed to dodge his punch. Her wings faltered. She pulled them back into place.

"You're going to have to concentrate harder." Iva charged at her again with a flurry of slow yet effective punches.

Siria did her best to focus on not getting hit and keeping her wings in place. Her foot caught on a rock causing her to fall. Her wings slipped back into her shadow.

"You've got to focus, candy girl," Iva said. "From this point on if you lose control of anything you'll be doing five hundred pushups before we continue with this training."

"Five hundred?!" Siria gasped. "Are you kidding me?"

"Of course not. I was serious about this. How serious are you? Are you ready to quit?" Iva smiled.

"No." Siria stood up. "I won't quit. I'll do whatever you want."

"Then let's go!" Iva charged again.

Siria did her best to fight, dodge, and keep her shadow wings under control. It was too hard. She messed up again. On Iva's command she dropped to the ground and started on her pushups. Her arms trembled and ached. But she pushed through each one before going back to fighting against Iva.

Her days of training continued. Iva alternated from working to build up Siria's body and to working on her shadows. Siria followed every order she was given. She continued to train her body through all kinds of weather, even a little when she was sick or had a cold. But when she got a high fever Sanji and Indigo insisted she take a break from training. The second she was better she got back to her training. And each passing day she felt her control over her body and her shadows grow stronger and stronger. Nothing stopped her. Not even when a strange dream, that left her feeling empty and confused, started visiting her when she slept. She pushed herself forward, determined to be an asset to her crew and find out where she came from and who her family was.


	17. Fashion, Control, & Feelings

Fashion, Control & Feelings

Siria shifted in her sleep. Her body tensed in response to her dream. _Iva and Indigo were coming right at her. Holding up her fists she prepared to block their attacks. But at the last second she jumped. Bending her shadow around her foot then shaping it into a sickle blade she kicked out at them. The blade went through them but instead of cutting their bodies their bodies faded like mist. She landed on her feet. The island around her went dark. There was enough light for her to make out shapes of things, but none looked familiar. Then muffled voices floated to her ears. They started to become clearer._

 _"She's bleeding too much! I need help here!" a male voice said._

 _"I've got it!" another voice said._

 _Baby cries filled the air._

 _"We got him!"_

 _"Wait! There's another one!"_

 _"There is? How is that possible?"_

 _"It's a girl!"_

 _More voices spoke but they were unclear._

 _"What?" a female voice said._

 _"What's going on?" Siria asked. The two babies cried._

 _"No. It can't be." The female's voice wavered. She sounded frantic, upset. Her voice faded. "How…rid of…not her."_

 _Siria looked around. She tried to locate the voices. A cold icy grip engulfed her heart. Her feet propelled her forward._

 _"This can't be happening! How could this be?!" the woman said._

 _The babies cries intensified as if someone was ripping their limbs off one by one._

 _"I said get rid of it!"_

Siria gasped. She shot up in bed. Sweat ran down her forehead. The last fragments of her dream faded away as Sanji shifted on the bed beside her.

"That dream again, huh?"

"Yeah." Siria nodded. Her body was swallowed up by a hollowness.

"You keep having that dream." Sanji sat up. "You're having it ever night now."

"I've noticed." Siria dropped back to her pillow. "I don't get it. Why is this happening? Why would I dream about something like that? At least the dream about me training makes sense. But the part about the people and the twins?" She touched her chest. "And this hollowness inside of me that appears afterwards. I hate it."

"I want you to take a break," Sanji said.

"Huh? What for?" Siria looked at him.

"You've been training nonstop for months," Sanji said. "You're over doing it."

"I'm fine, Sanji," Siria said. "You know Iva only increases my training when I have gotten stronger."

"No, you're not fine." Sanji shook his head. "There's got to be a reason you keep having this dream. I really think you're working yourself to hard. You know what happens if you get too weak."

"I know. But I've gotten better control over Bran. And that hard work has helped me improve. I might not be the best fighter still but I can now keep up with Iva and Indigo," Siria said.

"Siria, you still need to rest." Sanji stood from the bed. He crossed his arms and gave her a stern look. "I mean it."

"Okay, okay." Siria stretched out. "I'll take a break for the day. But it's not my fault if Iva doesn't allow it. You know how he can be."

"He has no choice. It's your body we're talking about." Sanji eyes fell down to her body. "Besides you've taken breaks before."

"Yeah. When I was sick." Siria watched as a light red flushed across his cheeks. Feeling self conscious she pulled the blanket up over her chest. Her shirt wasn't revealing but it got pulled down enough to reveal the top part of her breasts. But that wasn't the only time she had seen Sanji blush when he looked at her. Over the several months they had been here she had noticed a change in him. Often when he looked at her he'd quickly look away, especially if she was wearing a dress. And she always wore them now, unless she was training. She didn't feel very comfortable jumping around in a dress or skirt with a bunch of men around. So she stuck with shorts and pants during her training sessions with Iva. Those weren't the only times she noticed Sanji blushing around her. He would also blush furiously when she mentioned taking a bath.

It made her often wonder if it was possible his feelings for her had changed like hers did. While it took her a while to admit it to herself, she had developed feelings for the blonde man that weren't sibling related. She had a crush on him. One day she noticed those feelings had started to develop when they were attacked by the real Kuma on Sabaody, when she thought she would lose him forever. Then it grew when Sanji had developed his girly heart. For a while she hoped her feelings would disappear, that she would go back to liking him as a brother. But they didn't. Her feels continued to grow each time she saw him.

"You…you should let Iva know you won't be training today." Sanji averted his eyes.

"Yeah." Siria got off the bed. "I'll do that right now. You go ahead and use the bathroom."

Sanji headed to the bathroom while she left the room.

Siria rubbed her forehead as she made her way down the hall and into the living room. "Oh, Indigo. I didn't know you were up yet."

"Yeah, I woke up an hour ago and couldn't get back to sleep." Indigo pushed his needle through some fabric. "Why are you up?"

"I had that dream again."

"I see."

"Sanji wants me to take a break. So I was going to call Iva." Siria stepped over to the transponder snail sitting in slumber on a table in the corner of the room.

"You've been having that dream for several weeks. I think it might be best if you took a day off," Indigo said.

Siria picked up the transponder snail and dialed in Iva's number.

"Hello?" Inazuma answered.

"Good morning, Inazuma," Siria said. "Is Iva available?"

"Afraid not. He's currently in a conversation," Inazuma replied. "Is there something I can do for you?"

"I see. Could you pass on a message for me then?" Siria said. "I've had that dream again. Sanji thinks I'm just stressed out from training all the time. He wants me to rest."

"I see. Maybe that would be for the best. I'll pass on your message to Iva and let you know what he says," Inazuma said.

"Thank you, Inazuma." She hung up the receiver.

"Bathroom's free." Sanji walked into the room. "Did you get a hold of that creepy weirdo?"

"I left a message with Inazuma. He's going to pass it on to Iva," Siria said. She headed for the hall then to her room. After using the facilities she changed her clothes and joined the other two in the kitchen. Sanji already had breakfast on the table.

"Iva called back," Indigo said. "He said it would be fine for you to take the day off."

"That was fast." Siria sat down and ate. "Why don't you take a break today too, Sanji? We could spend the day together. We haven't done that since we started training."

"It has been a while." Sanji smiled. "Unfortunately, I don't think these nutcases here would let me take a break. And I don't want you to get tangled up in my problem."

"I understand," Siria said despite how her heart ached.

"How many of them have you gotten so far?" Indigo asked.

"One," Sanji grumbled. "But so help me I will get them all before our two years are up!"

"I'm sure you will but best not neglect your lover girl here." Indigo winked.

Siria flushed. Ducking her head she became very interested in her eggs.

"What?!" Sanji gasped, his cheeks turned red. "She's not my lover girl!"

"Oh." Indigo chuckled. "Then why are you two blushing?"

"Will you just shut up?!" Sanji snapped. "We're like siblings!"

"Like siblings don't make you siblings," Indigo said.

"Shut up! Siria is only a sister to me!" Sanji slammed his hands on the table. The dishes rattled angrily.

Siria bit her lip to keep it from trembling. Despite it being the truth Sanji's words cut through her. "Anyway, you should finish up here and get outside before they come looking for you."

"Right." Sanji finished breakfast then left.

Siria gathered the dishes. Stepping over to the sink she started washing them. She felt Indigo watching her. Yet nothing was said. When she finished up breakfast she stepped into the living room to find Indigo was back working on a dress. She walked over and asked, "Will you teach me?"

"You have an interest?" Indigo asked.

"Yeah." Siria nodded. "I'd like to give it a try."

"Sure thing." Indigo stood up. "Let's go to my work room."

Siria followed Indigo to the last room in the hall. The room was piled with fabric but not as much as it had been before. Indigo had been working hard on a new fashion line when he wasn't helping with her training. Still there were piles of fabric piled all over the room. When Indigo waved her over she stepped up beside her friend. She watched as the man started explaining how to pick out a pattern. With each word the man spoke a sparkle grew inside of her chest. She was anxious to get to work.

…

Siria closed her eyes. _When she opened them she came face to face with Bran in a form of a wolf. "So you've taken on the wolf form again."_

 _"It's a noble form," Bran said._

 _"If you say so." Siria shrugged._

 _"You don't sound convinced," Bran said._

 _"You're a shadow creature thing." Siria looked around. Over the weeks of her training she had noticed a difference in this place too, this place she started to call her shadow room. It became more lighted from an unseen light source as a field of flowers bloomed. She had no idea where it came from. It appeared about two months since her training started. And if Bran knew he wasn't telling her. It didn't really matter though. She knew she had gained more control over her shadows. And she knew Bran felt that too. It had been a long time since he had tried to take control of her._

 _"What are you doing here anyway?" Bran flicked his tail._

 _"No particular reason. I'm taking a break from training," Siria said. "Indigo is teaching me how to sew, but he had to run out for more thread."_

 _"More like you're checking up on me," Bran said._

 _"Maybe I am," Siria said. "I guess I'm still a bit concerned about you."_

 _"How so?" Bran tilted his head._

 _"I know I need to get stronger. I just don't want to hurt you in the process," Siria said._

 _Bran scoffed. "You're pathetic. Why don't you go play with that boy of yours?"_

 _"He's training," Siria said._

 _"The light in your eyes just dimmed. Have you finally decided to admit you like him?" Bran asked._

 _"Not you too. I don't like him. Not like you people think." Siria glanced down. Her fingers twiddled with each other._

 _"Sure you don't like him."_

 _Siria sensed if Bran had eyes he would have rolled them while saying that. Turning away from her he walked away._

 _Siria sighed. Why did she come here? Bran was not the sociable type at all._

Siria opened her eyes. One of the many bandages on her fingers had come loose. She pressed it back down.

"I got the thread!" Indigo entered the house.

"You know, I wish you had warned me how dangerous sewing was." Siria waved her fingers. "You should really form this into a fighting style."

Indigo laughed. "Maybe I should."

Chuckling, Siria got up from the couch and followed her friend back to his work room.

…

Siria pulled back her leg. Once she was close enough to Iva she kicked at him. Her shin collided with his wrist. She flapped her wings, keeping herself suspended in the air.

"Oh." Iva's mouth formed into an O. "You actually stopped me. I'm impressed."

"Yeah." Siria nodded.

"But it's not enough." Iva pushed on through.

Siria squeaked as she went flying backwards. She collided with the ground, bounced three times before rolling to a stop. With a frustrated growl she rubbed her palms down her face.

"Don't get so frustrated," Iva said. "You have improved a lot in these past ten months. See?" He pointed to her back. "Your wings are still there."

"I know. I guess I just thought I'd be better at this by now," Siria said.

"Candy girl, you have got to stop comparing yourself to us," Iva said.

"I'm not-"

"Don't even start with that." Iva waved his finger at her. "You are. There's no possible way for you to reach our level of skill within the two years you are going to train here."

"I understand." Siria sat up. "I just want to be strong enough to help my crew."

"You will be," Iva said. "Trust me."

"I do trust you," Siria said. Sanji's scream pulled their attention. The blond man was running away from the others again. He spun on his toes then slammed his foot into one of his pursuers before running again. "Looks like he's trying to wear them done one by one."

"A good strategy," Iva said. "I wonder if it'll work."

"He's gotten another of the recipes." Siria smiled. "And he'll get the rest."

"You really want him to get those recipes, don't you?" Iva asked.

"Well, yeah." Siria circled her finger in the dirt. "He is our cook after all."

"Are you sure that's the only reason?" Iva leaned closer to her. "Or do you want him to succeed because you're crushing on him?"

Heat rushed to Siria's cheeks. "I do not! Why do people keep saying that?"  
"Because it's true, candy girl!" Iva spun around. "You two are just denying your feelings. You may have started off with a sibling like relationship but you two have grown. You've changed, both physically and mentally. You are now on the path to a romantic relationship."

Siria ducked her head. It was getting harder and harder for her to deny her feelings.

"So what's the matter? Why don't you tell him how you feel?" Iva asked.

Siria swallowed. "I don't…know."

"I bet you're just scared. This is your first time having such feelings for someone, right?"

Siria nodded.

"The first time can be scary. Still you should go for it. It's obvious the way he looks at you that he shares those feelings," Iva said.

Siria shook her head. "You don't know that for sure."

"Girl, please." Iva swung his hips. "You don't see it, but let me assure you, the rest of us do. When he's around he's always watching you closely. When you talk to another guy he gets a jealous twinkle in his eyes."

Siria mulled over his words. There had been occasions where she had caught Sanji looking at her, but he would always look away or smile depending on the situation. But did that really mean Sanji liked her as more than a sister? She had seen other couples on this island. Yet those were at a distance. She didn't get to know them on a personal level. She didn't have time. Her days were taken up by training and sewing. In the past couple of months she had gotten really good putting together outfits for herself and Sanji. Indigo said she had a real gift for fashion. She wasn't sure she completely agreed but she knew she felt an amazing thrill when she worked with fabric.

"That's enough for today." Iva turned his back to Siria.

"We're not going to work with my shadows more?" Siria asked.

"You're no longer focused." Iva walked off. "You should think about what I said."

"But I'm not…" Siria sighed. Pushing herself to her feet she headed back to Indigo's house. Her wings melted back into her shadow at her feet.

"Siria! You're finally home!" Indigo wrapped Siria into a hug.

Air left Siria's lungs. She squealed out, "Too tight."

"Sorry, Sugar." Indigo held Siria back at arms length. "I'm just so excited!"

"Why?"

"You're going to have a fashion show!" Indigo sang.

"You want me to have a fashion show?" Siria blinked.

"Absolutely! You've made some incredible designs! You have to show them off!" Indigo danced around the living room. "And you'll be in it!"

"What?!" Siria screamed.

"Yes." Indigo shook a finger at the younger woman. "It's my rule. You have to do it."

Siria whimpered. "But I don't like…I'm not…I can't."

"Of course you can," Indigo said.

Siria shook her head. "I've never done anything like this."

"Girl, you'll be fine." Indigo patted her on the shoulder. "You'll be showing off your designs once you leave this island. Might as well get use to the attention."

"No one ever said I would get attention for my clothes," Siria said.

"Trust me." Indigo winked. "You'll get plenty of attention. You have a gift. And you should show it off."

"But my clothes are for normal sized people. I made them for my crew after all," Siria said.

"Don't fret, dear," Indigo said. "Iva can use his devil fruit powers on others while you and your lover boy show off the rest."

"Please stop calling him that."

"So are you going to do it?" Indigo's eyes sparkled.

"Do I have a choice?"

"Nope."

"Then I guess I am."

"Yes!" Indigo hugged her again.

"When is the show?" Siria asked.

"In a month," Indigo said.

Siria exhale. She wondered how this could have happened so quickly.

…

Siria trembled as she peaked out from behind the curtain. So many people were there. Their voice mingled together so she had no idea what they were saying. It looked as if the entire island showed up for her fashion show. Blood raced through her veins. Her chest tightened. "Great. I didn't think I'd be this nervous. I think I'm going to pass out."

"Relax. You're going to do fine," Indigo said. "You look so lovely."

Siria turned away from the curtain. She glanced down at her clothes. She was sporting a black, form fitting dress that hung off her shoulders. A strip of royal blue went around the bottom of her dress. It hid her sandals. She still had trouble walking on high heels. She had no idea how Nami was able to walk in them let along run.

"Sanji is going to love seeing you in that." Indigo eyed her dress. "I'm sure he'd love to see you out of it too.

Siria cheeks burned. "Wh-what? What are you saying?! Don't talk like that!"

"Oh dear." Indigo placed his fingers on his cheeks. "You two are so in denial."

"What are you talking about?! Wait! Don't answer that! I don't want to hear it!"

"I've watched you two closely over these months you've been here, you know. That silly boy of yours constantly hides behind the façade that you are like a sister to him. So annoying." Indigo sighed dramatically. "Hopefully after tonight things will be different. Maybe he'll make a move and take that dress off you himself."

"What?!" Siria's entire face burned hot. "What are you saying?! Did you plan this show just for _that_?!"

"Me?" Indigo blinked innocently. "I would never do such a thing!"

Siria growled. "Indigo!"

"This is your debut into the fashion world." Indigo reached out and fluffed Siria's bangs. "And if you two happen to finally admit your feelings to each other then all the better."

"Indigo," Siria whined.

"This is amazing," Sanji said. "I can't believe you made this to actually fit my body without measuring me."

Siria's heart hammered against her chest at the sound of Sanji's voice. She forced herself to look at him. She had to make sure everything fit right and if there was any need for last minute adjustments. "D-does it really fit that well? Are there any tight spots?"

"None at all." Sanji's eyes were still down on his suit, an identical black suit with a royal blue button up shirt.

Siria had made it with him in mind but she also had herself in mind. This was one of her many husband and wife, or boyfriend and girlfriend, designs. With trembling fingers she reached out for the jacket. She tugged on it a bit to see if it was tighter on him than it looked. It wasn't. There was enough room for him to move. He could even fight with it on. That was also something she had in mind when she designed her clothes. Since they were pirates they needed to be able to fight when they had to.

"You look amazing, Siria," Sanji said.

Siria took a timid glance up at him. His eyes were locked onto her dress. His cheeks had a pink tint to them.

 _"You two are pathetic," Bran said._

Siria flinched. All she needed was him to get involved in this. Gritting her teeth she whispered, "Shut up."

"The show's about to being. Are you two ready?" Indigo asked.

"Ready." Sanji nodded with his ever presence confidence.

"I'm ready as I can be." Siria shifted on her feet.

"Then I'll get started." Indigo headed for the stage. He was going to announce Siria and her clothesline. As he had said Iva used his devil fruit powers on some others on this island. They were modeling a lot of her clothes, they apparently knew more about modeling that she did. She was glad. She didn't think she'd be able to handle more than a few times going out on the stage. Her nerves were already spinning like a whirlpool. She was glad she skipped lunch.

Indigo started speaking. But Siria's nerves shook her so hard she was unable to hear what her friend was saying. She started to pace.

"You're going to be great," Sanji said. "They'll love you."

"I hope so. I've never been in front of such a large group before," Siria said. Her eyes went to her clothes handing on racks, waiting to be worn. Instantly she saw so many flaws in them. A stitch was out of place here; she used the wrong color trimming there. She shouldn't have agreed to this. "I think I'm going to be sick."

"Just pretend it's our crew out there," Sanji said. "They'll the only ones who are seeing this."

Siria paused and looked at him. He gave her a confident nod. "You're always so confident."

"Not always." Sanji looked away from her.

Siria's eyebrow knitted. She opened her mouth to talk to him but was interrupted by Caroline.

"You're on in ten," Caroline said before disappearing behind the curtain.

Siria drew in a deep breath. This was it. She exhaled slowly as Sanji took his place beside her near the entrance to the stage. They stood ready to walk down the catwalk together. The ten seconds passed. Indigo nodded. She slipped her arm into Sanji's and they marched onto the stage. Cheers erupted into her ears. Her worries melted away. She found she actually loved the attention as she strolled down the catwalk with Sanji by her side.

…

"Oh my gosh!" Siria said once the show was over. She ran over to Indigo. "That was amazing!"

"You were wonderful!" The large man caught her in his arms.

"Congratulations, Siria!"

"I love your clothes!"

"You were so beautiful tonight!"

"Thanks so much, guys!" Siria waved at those who helped with the fashion show. "You all were wonderful!"

"I told you! You are a success!" Indigo smiled.

"Maybe here, but I'm not so sure about anywhere else," Siria said. "But I don't care. I'm going to only be making clothes for my crew anyway."

"If that's what you wish to do with your gift." Indigo nodded. "Then go for it! Become the best designer in the world for your crew!"

"It is." Siria smiled. "And I will."

"You were wonderful tonight," Sanji said.

"Thanks, Sanji." Siria blushed when she looked at him.

"Well, let's get back out there," Indigo said. "Your fans want to meet you. And there's food."

"Great. Though my stomach is still spinning I don't know if I'll be able to eat anything." Siria slipped her arm through Indigo's and followed him out to the after part with Sanji tailing behind. Praises bombarded her upon her appearance. She graciously accepted their praise, though she knew she still had a lot to work to do.

Slowly the crowd began to thin out. Siria looked around for Sanji. It had been a while since she had seen him. "Where did he go?"

"Looking for your, lover boy?" Iva asked.

"Have you seen him?" Siria asked.

"I might have. Or not!" Iva said. "Heehaw!"

Siria ignored him. She was use to his odd behavior.

"If you're looking for that sweet candy boy," Elizabeth said, "he headed towards the cove a few minutes ago."

"Sanji left?" Siria asked.

"He said something about needing some air. You should go see him," Elizabeth said.

Siria hesitated.

"Go on." Indigo gave Siria a pushed.

Siria stumbled forward before catching herself. She glanced back at her friends before walking towards the cove. The night was cool on her hot skin. Her body drug a little. The fashion show took a lot more out of her than she thought it would. She really wanted to go to bed but knew she had to find Sanji first. Then she spotted him. He was sitting close to the water just staring out at the horizon. Her heart fluttered. He was still wearing the last outfit he had shown. It was beach attire, a shirt with bright sunflowers and shorts that hit his knees. As was the outfit she was wearing. Her top was a spaghetti strap with a large sunflower on the lower left side. Her shorts were a light green with a tan wrap with small sunflowers along the edge. Again they matched.

She lifted her foot then placed it right back down on the ground. Indigo's words, everyone's words, came flooding back to her. Should she just admit her feelings? Just like that? Would it ruin her relationship with him? Would it make it better?

 _"Just admit it already," Bran said. "You love him."_

"What do you care?" Siria asked.

 _"I don't. But your pathetic mood is getting on my nerves," Bran said. "You just go through your first fashion show yet you can't tell the one person you have never had any trouble talking to that you care about him? Are you still that much of a coward?"_

"Don't call me a coward!" Siria snapped. She waited for his reply but was only met with silence. Her eyes drifted back to Sanji. She hated to admit it but Bran was right. With a smile she pulled her shadows around her, forming her wings. Lifting herself into the air she flew over to Sanji. When he didn't notice her she flapped her wings a bit harder. His hair flew in this face.

"What the heck?"

Siria giggled. "Sorry. You seemed kind of distracted."

"Siria." Sanji looked at her. His eyes dropped to her exposed legs. His cheeks turned red before he turned away from her.

Siria's eyes widened. Her heart raced as her mind filled with Indigo's words about how Sanji found her attractive. He did. "Mind if I sit down?"

"Sure."

Siria sat beside him. "So what are you doing out here?"

"Just getting some air. That show was hotter than I expected it to be."

Siria glanced down at his shirt. Several buttons were open. Her heart fluttered again. She forced her eyes to the water. "Yeah. I guess it is a bit hot."

"I figured you'd be back there still getting complimented."

"Things were calming down. And you disappeared on me," Siria said.

"Sorry. I didn't mean to make you worry." Sanji picked up a rock and threw it into the water.

A few minutes of silence passed between them. Siria stole several quick glances at him. His eye was soft in the moonlight. "What are you thinking about?"

"Uh? Oh, um, nothing." Sanji chuckled. It sounded nervous to her.

"You…you looked really good tonight." Siria swallowed. Her mouth felt dry.

"Thanks. You do too," Sanji said. "I never would have guessed you had a gift for clothes."

"I'm surprised as well. But you were right when you said I'd find things I like." Siria slipped her feet from her sandals and hugged her knees. A few more minutes passed before she spoke again. "So, I was thinking about something."

"Oh?"

"Actually someone."

"Who's that?" Sanji looked at her.

"You." Siria kept her eyes at the water. It glittered under the moonlight.

"Me?" Sanji's eyes widened. "Did I do something to upset you?"

"No. It's nothing like that. It's more about both of us." Siria circled her toe in the sand. She felt his eyes on her.

"Siria?"  
She forced herself to look at him. "I like you!"

"Huh?"  
"I like you, Sanji." Heat rushed to her cheeks. He opened his mouth to speak but she wouldn't let him. "And I'm not talking about like a brother. I'm sorry if you don't feel the same. I just had to get that out there. You've been there for me. And it's okay if you only like me as a sister. I understand. I just wanted you to know how I felt. I love you, Sanji. Back on Sabaody…I was so scared when I thought I was going to lose you. And then it happened when we came here, when you changed. My feelings continued to grow and I-"

Sanji placed his finger on her lips to silence her. He held a warm smiled on his lips. "I feel the same."

"Huh?" Siria blinked.

"I know you've noticed. Everyone else has. I was scared to tell you because I kept saying we were siblings." His eyes filled with concern. "But also because of something else."

"Something else?"

Sanji nodded.

"What? What could make you so scared?"

"My…my father," Sanji whispered.

Siria's eyes widened. He never spoke of his family, not much. He did promise to tell her about them some day. "Sanji… Will you tell me about your family?"

Sanji nodded.

Siria listened as he told her how his father wanted to form him and his siblings into the perfect machines for fighting, how his mother took a poison to try and stop it, that she died, how he was beaten by his brothers and his dad, and how he had escaped from them with the help of his sister. Tears leaked from the corner of her eyes. "That's horrible. How could they do that to you? There's nothing wrong with wanting to cook and not fight."

"Yeah, well, that how it was. But it's over now," Sanji said.

"Will they ever come back for you?" Siria asked.

"I highly doubt it since I'm useless to them," Sanji said. "But still I was worried because I don't want them to hurt you if we happen to cross paths with them."

"You're better off without them." Siria took his hand in hers. "The thought of you turning out mean like them…I hate it. I love who you are. They won't hurt me. The crew won't allow it. And I'm stronger now."

"I like who I am now too." Sanji smiled. "And in a way, I'm kind of glad it did happen. I was able to meet you because of it."

Siria flushed.

"Mind if I try something?" Sanji asked.

"Wh-what?"

"This." Sanji cupped her cheek. Leaning in he pressed his lips to hers.


	18. Return to Sabaody

Return to Sabaody

Siria's smile grew as the ship pulled up to the beach. She eyed the trees for the number. "Grove forty-four. We're finally back on Sabaody. It's hard to believe that we're actually here again. So much has happened."

"These past two years sure have flow by," Indigo said.

Siria turned to her friend. Tears gathered in her eyes. She knew this time was coming. Still she wasn't ready to quite leave their new friends yet. But the time had come to say goodbye. She hugged Indigo. "Thank you so much for everything you have done."

"It was a pleasure meeting you." Indigo hugged her tightly.

"All right," Sanji said. "Let my girlfriend go. I don't want your freakiness to rub off on her."

"And you!" Indigo grabbed Sanji in a headlock. "Don't you dare defile her before you are married! And don't you dare get her pregnant before you both are ready for the responsibility!"

"What?!" Sanji and Siria flushed. "We just started dating not that long ago! Why would we even be considering sex and kids?!"

"Don't give me that attitude, mister." Indigo squeezed the young man harder. "I know you're really a hormonal raging jerk! I won't stand for you to get her pregnant! I will know if you do! And I will hunt you to the ends of the seas to castrate you myself!"

The others laughed. "Indigo has grown so protective of Siria!"

"I know! It's like he's her father now!"

"I don't doubt he'll actually do that to Sanji!"

As their friends continued to talk about her and Sanji getting married and having kids, Siria thought about Indigo being like a father to her during the time they had been together. She didn't know if he was or not. Since she never had a dad, that she knew of, she didn't know exactly what a dad would do for her. Still something about him being protective of her like this warmed her chest.

"Let go!" Sanji freed himself from Indigo. He jumped behind Siria "Come on, Siria! Let's get off this stupid ship!"

"Okay." Siria nodded. Once the stairs were in place and they had all of her clothes with them, they descended to the beach.

"Are you sure we don't have to escort you to your ship?" Elizabeth asked. "The navy could be looking for you right now. This place is dangerous as it is. We don't mind going with you."

"We'll be fine." Siria smiled. "It's been two years since we've last been here. Why would they be looking for us now?"  
"You might have a point," Elizabeth said. "Still be careful. This is a bad place."

"Thank you all for bringing us here." Siria's eyes went to Indigo as the rest said their flirty goodbyes to Sanji. With all their words fading in her ears she stepped up to her friend. "Hey, Indigo?"

"Yes, Sugar?"

"I was wondering." Siria twiddled her fingers. "I, um, I don't know exactly how a father is…but would it be all right if I looked to you as one? You helped me a lot over these past two years."

"I would be honored." Tears gathered at the corner of his eyes. He leaned down and hugged her. "I love you so much, my child. Be careful. I'll be watching for you in the newspapers. I can't wait to see how you grow."

"Thank you, Indigo." Siria hugged him back. She pulled away from him and joined Sanji. She was surprised to see someone had gathered some bubbles for them to carry all the clothes she had made and brought with her. Her bags had already been shoved inside of them.

"Finally! We've returned from hell!" Sanji said his eyes wandering over the women in the near by town. "So many beauties!"

"As long as I'm the only beauty you touch," Siria said.

"Of course, my love." Sanji pecked her lips. "You're the only one."

"Good." Siria smiled.

"Bye, you two!"

"Be careful!"

"We'll miss you!"

"Bye! Be careful on your way home! And say hi to Iva for us!" Siria waved as she followed Sanji inland. Before long their friends and the ship was out of sight. The large trees became their main scenery as they made their way through the grove. "So where do you think Rayleigh is? Back at Shakky's? Or do you think he tried to sell himself again?"

"Well," Sanji said with the vivre card piece in his palm. "If we're lucky he's back at the bar. At least he's on the island. I wonder if Luffy's with him."

"I've been wondering if the others are here yet too," Siria said.

"We'll know soon enough," Sanji said.

Siria chatted with him as they moved through the groves. She wondered how much the others had changed, how stronger they had gotten, while looking out for any marines that might be looking for them. She never spotted any but knew that didn't mean they weren't there. Finally they made it to Grove 13. Shakky's Rip Off Bar was right where they had left it, still looking a bit run down. With an excited squeal she ran up the stairs.

"Hey! Wait!" Sanji called after her.

Reaching the door she flung it open. Smoke and booze wafted over her nose.

"Oh, welcome back," Shakky said.

"You finally made it," Rayleigh said.

"Hey!" Siria glanced over the room. Shakky was behind the bar, Rayleigh was in a chair reading a newspaper, and the Flying Fish Riders were in the corner of the room healing from a beating. She looked right at Duval's bandages. "What happened to you?"

"What's going on?" Sanji asked stepping into the room.

"Young Master," Duval said. "You two are together? The others arrived separately."

"So they did get sent to other islands alone," Siria said.

"Do you mean you two didn't?" Shakky asked.

"No." Siria shook her head. "When Kuma went for Sanji I ran to him. We got sent to the Kamabaka Kingdom."

"So you must have meet Ivanko then," Rayleigh said.

"We did." Siria nodded. "It was an interesting place. They helped me grow stronger."

"I can tell." The old man smiled. "You're just dripping with confidence now." His eyes went to her bare legs. "And you've gotten a lot stronger too."

"Hey! Don't stare at her legs like that!" Sanji snapped. "She's my girlfriend, you old man! Back off!"

Rayleigh laughed. "I see. So more than training happened between you two on that island."

"What ever. So who's all here?" Sanji asked.

"Well, Zoro was the first to arrive," Shakky said.

"That stupid swordsman got here first?! You've got to be kidding me!" Sanji said.

"Franky was second. He got here ten days ago and already headed over to the ship," Shakky said.

"Of course. There's not a scuff to be seen, and I've finished the coating. I hear he's been working hard, too," Rayleigh said.

"Thanks for the coating," Siria said.

"No problem. Though you should give your thanks to Duval and his men," Rayleigh said. "They fought to keep your ship safe."

Siria looked at the injured man. "So that's why you're so hurt."

"There's no shame in an honorable injury." Duval winked.

"Yes! A full year for recover!" his men said just as enthusiastic as ever.

"Um…okay," Siria said. "That made no sense at all."

"You're surprisingly honorable. I owe you one, Duval," Sanji said. "Thanks for keeping the Sunny safe."

"The Sunny," Siria mumbled. "We're so close to being home again. I can't wait to see it."

"Huh? Handsome? Just paying you back, day after day I was assaulted by rain and wind and strong pirates who wanted to get their hands on that ship," Duval said. "I fought even while wounded."

"And Nami got here third," Shakky continued.

"Nami? Where is she now?" Sanji asked.

"She had some free time, so she went out shopping," Shakky said.

"Don't you even care about my war stories anymore?" Duval asked.

"Fourth was Usopp. He arrived three days ago. Fifth was Chopper, who came yesterday," Shaky said. "Brook arrived today for his concert. And now you two have arrived. In other words, the eight of you are already on the island somewhere."

"Concert?" Siria asked. "Brook's playing at a concert?"

"Yes. Brook has become rather popular." Shakky handed them a poster with Brook on it.

"He got a singing career now?" Siria showed Sanji the poster. "I didn't expect that at all."

"That just leaves Nico Robin and Luffy. Just getting back to this island is quite a feat," Rayleigh said flipping down his newspaper. "I'm impressed that you all managed to get back here."

"Yeah. I'm surprised you trained Luffy, though. He must be pretty strong by now," Sanji said.

"I haven't seen him in six months myself, so I'm looking forward to seeing how much he's grown since then." Rayleigh smiled.

"I can't wait to see them all!" Siria smiled. "I want to show them my clothes right now!"

"Your clothes?" Shakky asked.

"Oh, right. While we were in the Kamabaka Kingdom I learned how to sew. I'm a fashion designer now." Siria modeled the clothes she was wearing. "I made this and several others for the crew."

"Wow." Shakky eyed the clothes. "You really have changed. I never would have guess you'd be like this now."

"Neither did I," Siria said. "I even got better with my shadows. It's been several months since Bran tried to take control. It's like he lost interest."

"I'm glad to hear it," Rayleigh said. "You've grown a lot over these past two years. I'm impressed."

Siria nodded. "Thanks a lot."

"We should probably head on out," Sanji said. "I've got a lot of food shopping to do for the journey ahead. I'm sure the Sunny is completely out."

"Okay," Siria said.

"Well, thanks again for all your help," Sanji said. "We really appreciate it."

"Not a problem at all," Rayleigh said.

"We'll serve you any time, Young Master," Duval said.

"Yes! Anytime!" Duval's followers said.

The two pirates left the bar. They headed to the shopping groves to get what they needed. Siria glanced up at a tree. "We're now entering Grove forty-two. So what are you looking for?"

"Hopefully a bargain," Sanji said. "Fish would be a good start. There's a place over there." He pointed to a stall near the ocean. An old man stood near it, staring out at the water. "Hey, Mister Fisherman, how's the haul today? I'm looking for a bargain! What's wrong?"

"He's gone! That green haired guy!" the man said.

"Green haired guy?" Siria asked.

"Did something happen?" Sanji asked.

"I've gone and done something terrible. You see, just now, this guy with three swords happened to come by here. He said that he was bored and wanted to do some fishing. So I told him I'd be taking my boat out for a while and just wait for me onboard," the old man said.

"A green haired guy with three swords and a haramaki around his waist?" Sanji asked.

"Yeah! That's him! One eyed to book. Do you know him?" the old man said.

"One eye?" Siria asked.

Siria cringed. "What has Zoro gotten himself into now?"

"Is this the guy?" Sanji showed Zoro's bounty poster.

"Yeah. This is the guy all right. He a friend of yours?"

"Well, I suppose. I know of him."

"Sanji." Siria sighed. "Yes, we know him."

"Listen, I told him to wait on my boat. But you know what I found when I came over here? He was only fast asleep on the gigantic pirate ship right next to it. I was panicked, I tell you but I yelled at him that wasn't my boat. I did, but he just keeps on snoring. And by then it was too late. The pirate ship was all coated up and it sank right down into the ocean. It must have headed off for Fishman Island."

"That idiot," Sanji said. "I thought it was a bad sign that he'd actually made it to the meeting point before anyone else, and now look what happened?"

"It was a pirate ship, you hear me?! He could've been killed by now!" the old man said. "Don't you care?"

"Don't worry about it. It's not your fault," Siria said. "Stuff like this happens all the time with him."

"She's right. At least we know where to find him. So, have you got any fish?" Sanji asked.

"Hey! There's something in the ocean!" someone shouted. They turned their attention to the water. Several bubbles disrupted the surface before a ship split in half rose above the waterline. On the ship sat Zoro wearing a disgruntled expression.

"You're back? Not that I'm happy about it," Sanji said.

"Hey! Zoro!" Siria waved.

"Oh, it's you two." Zoro jumped over to them. He landed with a thud. "When did you get here?"

"Zoro!" Siria couldn't stop herself from hugging the swordsman. "I'm so glad to see you! But your eye. What happened?"

"Nothing. It's just part of my training," Zoro said. "What's with all the bags?"

"It's a surprise." Siria beamed. "And we just arrived a little while ago."

"Let's just go." Sanji started walking. "I have shopping to do before we go to the ship."

"I want to go to the coast. I want to do some fishing," Zoro said.

"Forget it, you big dumb brute!" Sanji said. "You're staying with us!"

"Why do I have to listen to the likes of you anyway?" Zoro said.

"What, you think I'm hanging around with you because I want to?!" Sanji shouted. "I just don't trust you enough to leave you wandering around this island again, you brainless mosshead! We're all meeting up pretty soon, so just shut up and follow me, got that?!"

Siria giggled. It felt good to hear them two arguing again. Still she broke into the fight so Sanji could get his shopping done. She told Zoro about her training and how she learned to be a cloth designer over the past two years. She left out Sanji's training and the fact that they were a couple now for later. She figured Sanji would tell about his training if he wanted to. And she'd prefer to let the crew know about their relationship all at once. She wasn't sure exactly how to tell them about it.

"You really done all that?" Zoro asked.

"I sure did." Siria nodded.

"That's impressive," Zoro said.

"Hold up a second," Sanji said.

"What is it?" Siria looked up. They had stopped at a transponder snail.

"I'm going to check in with Franky," Sanji said. He picked up the receiver and dialed the ship's number. A few rings later and Franky's voice came over the line.

"Yo! This is Franky speaking. Who's this?"

"Hey, Franky. It's Sanji," Sanji said.

"Bro, you made it back, huh?"

"Yeah. I'm here with Zoro and Siria," Sanji said. "I was just wondering if you needed anything. We're shopping right now."

"No. I'm super good right now," Franky said. "But you all need to be careful. The navy is looking for us. Word got around that our crewmates have been sighed."

"So they are after us after all," Siria said once Franky quite speaking.

"That's right," Franky said. "You should get here as soon as you can."

"All right," Sanji said. "We'll finish up here and be there as soon as we can."

"Later." Franky hung up.

An explosion went off not too far away from them.

"How much you want to be that's one of our crewmembers?" Sanji said. "My money's on Luffy."

"We should go check it out and help if it's him." Zoro placed his hand on the hilt of his swords.

"So you're going to fight?" Siria asked.

"I hope to escape rather than fight," Sanji said. "But you know Luffy."

"Yeah. Well, I'm going to go ahead and take my bags to the ship," Siria said. "I don't want them damaged in a fight before the others get them. I put too much work into them for them to be destroyed."

"All right. Can you take these for me?" Sanji asked holding out his own bubbles full of his purchases.

Siria nodded. She took his purchases from him. "Be careful, you two. We only just got back. I want to see the crew all together."

"We'll be fine," Sanji said. He stole a quick kiss from her before running off with Zoro.

Siria watched them go before heading off to the Sunny. To make sure no one noticed who she was, she pulled her shadow up around her hair. It darkened her already dark blue hair to black. She tugged her sunglasses over her eyes. There was no way of knowing if the navy got a picture of her two years ago. Nothing about her had appeared in any newspapers like that but that didn't mean anything.

The navy knew of her now. They would be looking for her as well. She figured it was best to be as safe as possible. As she worked her way to the ship she carefully watched out for marines. When she had enough cover from prying eyes she sent out several shadow squirrels to help search for the soldiers. Some were spotted. The soldiers were using whatever they could to conceal their presence but her squirrels spotted them easily enough.

Siria smiled. Calling her shadow squirrels back to her, she summoned her wings and flew up to the branches. Standing there for a moment she watched as the soldiers gathered where she had been. Far up in the tree she could easily see their confusion as to where she had disappeared. Giggling at her advantage over them she flew the rest of the way to the Sunny, careful not to pop the bubbles on a branch.

A few more minutes and she saw it. The bright colors of the Sunny shimmered against the lighter colors of the trees around it. She had finally returned home. And when she got close enough she saw her friends were there as well. The only ones missing were the two she left and Luffy. A smile bloomed on her lips. She squealed. "Hey! Everyone!"

"Huh?" Usopp looked up at her. "Hey! It's Siria! What?! She's flying!"

"What?! How can she fly?!" Chopper asked.

"Well, she did have one wing when we last saw her," Robin said.

"Seems like she grew another one," Nami said. "I guess she got better control over her powers."

"Siria!" Franky said as she landed. "It's super good to see you! You look great!"

"Thanks, Franky! Wow! You look different!" Siria eyed his new body. She wondered with his large rounded shoulders if he would be able to fit through any doors at all.

"Yup. I did a lot of work." Franky struck is typical pose.

"You look great." Siria smiled. "You all look great."

"Siria!" Chopper and Usopp hugged her.

"Hey, guys." Siria hugged them while trying to keep hold of her bubbles.

"I can't believe you were actually flying!" Chopper said.

"You like that, huh?" Siria asked.

"I sure do," Chopper said.

"How did you manage to do that?" Usopp asked.

"With a lot of hard training," Siria said. "A _lot_."

"What's with all the bags?" Nami asked.

"Some are mine while some are Sanji's. He did some shopping before I came here. We think Luffy got into some trouble. They went to see if it is him," Siria said. "You let your hair grown. It looks good."

"Thanks. You were with Sanji? Did you two meet up here at the same time?" Nami asked.

"Actually, we were sent to the same place," Siria said. "I guess since we were holding onto each other when Kuma touched us we ended up staying together. I can't wait to tell you all about it. But first I need to get the food put up before it can spoil."

"Of course." Nami nodded.

"We'll help you," Usopp said as he and Chopper prepared to follow her to the kitchen.

"Great. Help me get my bags out first then we'll go to the kitchen." Siria started pulling her bags out with one hand. "I don't think all these bubbles will fit through the door."

"Allow me." Robin crossed her arms over her chest. Within a short minute all of Siria's bags were on the deck.

"Amazing," Siria said. "You're looking good too, Robin."

"Thank you. Your hair has gotten longer as well," Robin said.

"Oh yeah." Siria touched her hair. She had forgotten she let it grow out a few inches. Now it fell just below her shoulders.

"Let me take some of those." Usopp took some bubbles from her hand and led her to the kitchen.

Siria stepped inside. She took a deep breath. Despite the obvious smell of dust and stale air that had gathered over the past two years, the kitchen still smelled the same. She couldn't wait until Sanji started cooking again. With Usopp and Chopper's help they had everything put up within fifteen minutes. By that time Sanji, Zoro, and Luffy had returned. Then went back out on the deck. Her eyes landed on their captain. "Luffy!"

"Hey! Siria!" Luffy waved with a big smile.

Siria ran to him. She threw her arms around him. "I'm so glad to see you. I was so worried. We saw what happened to Ace. I'm so sorry. I wish we could have been there for you."

"It's okay." Luffy patted her back. "Ace wouldn't want us to be sad. So I'm okay now."

"I'm glad." Siria pulled back and smiled at him.

"Hey, Siria, what's in these bags?" Chopper asked.

Siria smiled.

"You're glowing," Nami said. "What is it?"

"A surprise." Siria stepped over to the bags. She sorted through them then handed everyone three bags each. "I hope you all like them."

The crew opened their bags.

"Wow! These clothes are amazing!" Nami said holding up a mini dress to her body. "This one's so cute!"

"That are amazing," Robin said holding a dark purple top.

"So cool!" Chopper said checking out a cotton candy styled hat.

"You made these?! So awesome!" Luffy held up one of the shirts she made him.

"Super!" Franky said.

"Thanks. I was sewing from memory thought. So I might have to make some adjustment so they'll fit your bodies better," Siria said.

Brook laughed. "My are just fine. You did an amazing job from memory."

"Thanks," Siria said.

"I had no clue you even knew how to do this," Zoro said examining his clothes.

"I found that out while we were in the Kamabaka Kingdom," Siria said. "A friend I made there is a fashion designer. He taught me."

"I'm amazed," Usopp said. "You're completely different now. You're so confident."

"I know. A lot of things have changed over the past two years," Siria said. Heat crept to her cheeks when Sanji spilled his fingers between hers.

"You're blushing." Nami's eyes dropped to Siria and Sanji's intertwined hands. "Oh my gosh! Are you two a couple now?!"  
"We are." Sanji nodded.

"That's shocking," Robin said.

"Yeah." Nami nodded. "He was so certain he was like a brother to her."

"So has she let you see her panties now?" Brook asked.

"Shut up!" Sanji kicked Brook on the head.

The skeleton hit the floor. "Ouch. I guess that's a no."

"So the perverted cook got him a girlfriend," Zoro said. "Shocking."

"Shut up!" Sanji snapped.

Siria laughed. It was really good to finally be back with the crew. But their happy reunion was quickly cut short when the navy started firing on them. Everyone broke into their traditional roles of fighting back. When a cannon ball flew at them, she curled her shadow towards it. The cannon ball followed the spiral before shooting back at the navy ship.

"Wow! You have such control now!" Usopp said.

"I sure do." Siria smiled. Suddenly Sanji gagged. "What is it, Sanji?"

"I felt like my soul was just crushed," Sanji said with a cringe. He dropped to his knees and clutched his chest.

Siria's eyes were pulled from him when a large shadow passed over the ship. She gasped when she saw it was giant birds. "What's that? Where'd they come from?"

"Some friends of mine," Chopper said while waving at the birds. "Thanks for the help!"

"I guess we all made some friends over these past two years," Siria said.

"Who's ship it that?" Usopp pointed out at the ocean. "It's blocking the navy from getting to us."

"Isn't that the pirate empress?" Nami asked. "Why is she here?"

"Oh," Luffy said. "They brought me here. I spent some time with them."

"What?!" Sanji gasped. "How could you have gone to that island while I was stuck in hell?!"

"Hell?" Usopp asked.

"I'll explain later," Siria said.

"All right, everyone!" Nami called. "Listen up! I've got some instructions for you all to follow before we head to the bottom of the ocean." The crew listened while she explained the instructions to how the coating worked. "And that's how it works. While th coating is strong it can still pop if poked too many times."

"All right then! Let's set sail!" Luffy cheered. "We're heading to the New World!"

Siria watched as the coating started rising up around them. It formed an air tight bubble around the whole entire ship. Only a small part of the mast and their pirate flag stuck through the bubble. Then the ship started sinking into the water. The bright sky slowly faded to the darker depths of the ocean. She locked her eyes to the horizon for as long as she could. Sadness washed over her.

"You'll see them again," Sanji said.

"I know." Siria nodded. "One day we will see them again. Let's get the kitchen cleaned."

"You want to clean?" Sanji's eyes widened slightly. "Now?"

"It'll distract me for a while." Siria hugged his arm and lead him towards the kitchen. "Besides, traveling under the water I'm going to be at a huge disadvantage if we have to fight. I might be able to use Bran but I'll be weak."

"That's right. I almost forgot you're weaker when there's no light," Sanji said. "It'll be fine. You have me here to protect you."

"You're so sweet." They entered into the kitchen.

"So how are you really feeling?" Sanji pulled out cleaning supplies for them.

"What do you mean?" Siria took a cloth and started wiping away the dust.

"We're getting ready to search for answers to your past," Sanji said. "Are you ready for it? It could be rather shocking."

"I know it might be. But I still want to know. And I want to know if this dream I keep having has anything to do with it." Siria gripped the cloth.

Sanji sighed. He pulled her into a hug and stroked her hair. "It'll be fine."

Siria nodded. "I know. No matter what happens you and the crew are my real family." She smiled up at them. "Nothing will ever change that."

"Good." Sanji leaned down and kissed her.

Siria moaned into his kiss. When he didn't stop she spoke between kisses. "Sanji?"

"Hm?"

"We have…work…to do."

"I know."

"Then why…aren't we…doing it?"

"Because I like kissing you best."

Siria wrapped her arms around his neck, deepening their kiss. She licked his lips. He instantly parted for her. Slipping her tongue into his mouth she explored him fully, earning multiple moans of satisfaction from him.

Sanji's hands slowly trailed down her sides then up her back.

"Sanji! Food!" Luffy busted into the room. Both jumped at his unexpected rival. "What are you two doing?"  
"We were kissing until someone interrupted us." Sanji glared at their brainless captain.

"Oh? Who?" Luffy asked.

"You might have gotten stronger physically but your brain is a weak as ever," Sanji said.

"Whatever! I'm hungry! Make me food!" Luffy said.

"No way! We just set sail! And we don't even have the kitchen clean yet!" Sanji said. "You're going to have to wait!"

"Aw! But I'm hungry now!" Luffy pouted. His shoulders slumped.

"Sorry, Luffy," Siria said. "You can wait a while longer."

"Okay." Luffy left the room.

"Now let's get back to kissing." Sanji moved to pull her back to him.

"Hold it." Siria placed her fingers on his lips. "If we continue to do that nothing will get done. We have to clean this place up then our bedroom."

"Fine." Sanji sighed. "But after that I get to kiss you more."

"Fine by me." Siria pecked his lips before going back to cleaning. After a couple hours they had the kitchen and their room cleaned. "There. All done." She breathed in the clean smell of their room. "So much better. I guess Duval and his friends didn't have much time to clean the ship. I guess I don't blame them. They had a hard time with protecting the ship as it was." Her eyes drifted to the aquarium. It was empty. They would have to fill it again soon. "We should head back to the deck now."

"Not yet." Sanji grabbed her.

"What are you-"

Sanji pushed her down to their bed. "Just this." He kissed her, slipping his tongue through her lips before she could protest.

Siria growled at him but didn't fight back. She wrapped her arms around him and kissed him back. Still they didn't have much time. Both knew if they stayed in their room for too long someone would interrupt them. So after a good kissing session they headed back out to the deck. She pulled him to a stop before he could open the door. "Hey, Sanji?"

"What is it?" Sanji looked at her.

"We are staying in the same room, right?"  
"Why would you ask that?" He fully turned to her.

"I don't know. I mean we're a couple now." Siria shrugged. "I just wasn't sure if it was…"

Sanji chuckled. "We stayed in the same room back in the Kamabaka Kingdom. Why should it change now?"

"Sorry. I guess I'm just a bit nervous. This _our_ room," Siria said. "Back there we were guests. It's different."

"I understand." He kissed her forehead. "And don't worry. I'm not going to sleep in another room. I'm staying with you."

Siria nodded. They stepped out on the deck. Sitting together on the mast bench, she snuggled into him while they watched the dark waters around them.

…

 **Author's Note: I've decided to skip Fishman Island Arc since I'm not familiar with it.**


	19. Ambush & Origin

Ambush & Origins

Siria stretched out. The sun grew hot on her skin as it shone down on the ship. "It feels so good to finally be out of the ocean. I thought we'd be down there forever."

"So no light really does affect you more than we thought," Usopp said. "Must have been really hard being under the water."

"I think I notice it more now that I'm more in control of my powers," Siria said. "While the lights inside of the Sunny help they can never replace the sun."

"The natural light of the sun is good for you in multiple ways," Chopper said.

"It wasn't good for you in the dessert." Usopp grinned.

"Yeah. That was bad," Chopper said.

"I'm glad I missed that island." Brook strummed his guitar.

"Why? You're bones," Siria said.

"True. But I would have dried up into dust!" Brook laughed.

"Hey, guys!" Zoro called from the crow's nest. "There's an island over there. And someone's waving at us!"

"Someone?" Nami asked. "Do you know who it is?"

"No clue. But he seems to know who we are," Zoro said. "He's trying to wave us over."

"Someone that knows us?" Chopper asked.

"Really?! Let's go see!" Luffy said.

"What?! We can't do that! This is the New World! We have to be careful!" Usopp said. "It's probably a trick!"

"Hold on a second," Franky said. The crew turned to him. He was looking through binoculars. "We do know that guy. It's that Raney guy we meet two years ago."

"Raney? So he made it to the New World after all," Sanji said.

"Kind of odd that he's here at the same time we are," Nami said.

"Maybe he heard we were back and decided to come here at the same time," Luffy said. "We should go say hi!"

"Think we should?" Siria asked.

"I don't see why not," Sanji said. "It could give us an example of how the islands are here in the New World before we get in too deep."

"Sounds like a good idea to me." Siria took his hand.

"Oh man," Usopp said. "Are you two going to be all lovey dovey with each other now?"

"Maybe." Sanji grinned. "We've gone through a lot to get here."

"So are we going?" Brook asked.

"Might as well." Nami looked at her log pose. "The log's not set to an island yet."

"Then let's go!" Luffy held up his fists.

"Right!" Franky ran up to the helm. The ship turned towards the island. Within a couple minutes the ship slowed to a stop and the anchor was dropped.

"Hey! You finally made it!" Raney waved.

Laughing, Luffy jumped down to the island. "Yup. We finally came to the New World."

"That's great. I'm glad we ran into you all." Raney smiled.

Siria stared down at the man while he continued to talk with Luffy. Her mind went back to when they first met. Raney had tried to hit on her. He would have continued if it hadn't been for Sanji. She wondered how the man was going to act with her now.

"Something wrong, Siria?" Sanji asked.

"No, not really," Siria said. "I was just remembering when we first met him."

"Well, he won't flirt with you again." Sanji took her hand. "Not with me here."

"My sweet prince." Siria smiled with a wink. "Always there to rescue me."

Chuckled Sanji pick her up and jumped down to the island. He sat her down when Raney looked at them and took her hand to make sure the man understood Siria was his girlfriend now.

"Hi there." Raney walked over to them. "I see you two have become a couple now. I should have known that would happen with how protective you were of her two years ago."

"It actually didn't happen then," Sanji said. "But that's none of your business."

"Okay, okay." Raney held up his hands. "I still think she's pretty but I have no intention of making a move on her."

"Good," Sanji said.

Siria smiled.

"So when did you all get here?" Usopp asked.

"We've been here for a few days," Raney said. "We had a run in with a sea monster while passing under the water. He damaged our ship a bit. So we're fixing it now."

"Oh yeah. We meet him too," Luffy said. "He's our friend now."

"I'm not surprised," Raney said. "You were always friendly."

Franky whistled. "That's an impressive ship. You didn't have this one last time did you? Is that some kind of engine on it?"  
Siria looked to the ship. She didn't really notice the difference from their other ship but knew Franky did. There were parts on it that didn't look familiar.

"It is new," Raney said. "We decided to get a new ship before coming to the New World. It took a while to complete but as you can see, she's a beauty."

"She sure is. But the Sunny will always be better," Franky said. "She's a real super ship!"

"I don't doubt it," Raney said. "Why don't you all join us for lunch? We were just about to eat."

"Food?! Sure!" Luffy said.

"Then come on." Raney waved at them to follow him farther away from the shore.

Siria took a step before noticing Sanji wasn't moving. Glancing back she found him staring at Raney's ship. "Something wrong, Sanji?" He didn't answer. "Sanji?"

"Sorry. What?" Sanji looked at her.

"You okay? You seemed distracted," Siria said.

"I'm sorry." Sanji squeezed her hand. "I just thought it was odd that Raney didn't answer Franky's question about the engine."

"Does it matter?" Siria blinked.

"No. Let's go." Sanji led her farther inland. Raney's crew was gathered around a crackling fire. Some were talking while other were sparing. He ran his eyes over the men. "You look like you've added more people to your crew."

"You noticed," Raney said. Crossing his arms and legs he leaned back against a log. "You gotta have a strong crew to survive in the New World. I got as many as I could before coming here."

"They look really strong," Nami said.

"They are." Raney nodded.

"So cool! I want to fight them!" Luffy said.

"Luffy! Don't start a fight!" Usopp said.

Raney laughed. "I should have seen that coming. I've got to say that I'm impressed with you, Straw Hat. Going into the war at Marineford. Why would you do something like that?"

"I was trying to save my brother," Luffy said.

"Your brother? Do you mean Fire Fist Ace?" Raney's eyes widened.

"That's him." Luffy nodded.

"Oh. Sorry," Raney said. "I didn't know he was your brother."

"It's fine," Luffy said.

"You crew doesn't seem very talkative," Chopper said.

"They prefer action over words," Raney said.

"Must get kind of lonely on the ship," Brook said.

"Sometimes," Raney said. "But I still have Brendon. He talks more than the others."

"Brendon?" Usopp asked. "Who's that?"

"Him." Raney pointed to a guy with shorty spikey light blonde hair.

Siria's eyes drifted to the man Raney pointed out. Brendon looked to be about Sanji's height with a small beard tapered to a point. He was clearly older than Sanji and Raney.

"He's one of our best fighters," Raney said.

"Is he new to your crew?" Chopper asked.

"No, he's been with us for a while," Raney said. "You should have at least seen him last time we met."

"Don't remember him. Is the food done yet?" Luffy looked over to the fire. "The fish smells so good."

"I'm sure it's about done." Raney looked at his cook. When the cook nodded he nodded back. "Since you're our guests here why don't you get yours first?"  
"Yes!" Luffy dashed over to the fire.

"Hey! Wait for us!" Usopp and Chopper followed close behind as the rest of the crew follow slower.

"It smells good," Siria said. She picked her up a bowl of the stew then headed back with Sanji. They sat down together and started eating.

"This is amazing," Nami said. "Though it's not as good as Sanji's."

"You flatter me, Nami," Sanji said.

"You should taste his food now," Siria said. "In between training he was able to develop his cooking skills too."

"Really?! I bet his food is now super tasty! I can't wait!" Luffy gulped down his bowl of stew before running for another one.

"You could at least slow down," Nami said. "The food's not going anywhere."

Siria lowered her spoon. Sleepiness suddenly washed over her. She slumped against Sanji's side. "Sanji, I feel tired."

"Funny," Sanji said. "I feel tired as well."

"Same here," Nami said. The bowl fell from her hands before she collapsed to the ground.

"Crap! Everyone! You have to stay awake!" Sanji said.

"Nightie night," Usopp said as he curled up with Chopper. Luffy was already asleep beside them. As was Brook.

Sanji cursed. He grabbed Siria. "Come on! Stay awake!"

"I can't. I'm going to sleep for a while now," Siria said before closing her eyes.

Sanji glanced at Raney when the man laughed. His vision blurred then cleared. "You did this? Why? What did we ever do to you?"  
"Nothing," Raney said. "You people did absolutely nothing to me." He pointed at Siria. "But she is going to make me rich."

"Why her?" Sanji tried to stand up but the sleeping potion prevented it. He looked to find his whole crew was asleep.

"Someone is very interested in having her returned to them," Raney said. "And they're going to pay rather handsomely for her _safe_ return."

"Bastard," Sanji said. "You work for Eris Cain."

"Hm? Sadly no." Raney walked over to him. "But you're close. Eris Cain did die at sea."

Sanji gritted his teeth. He swung his leg at Raney.

Raney held up his arm, easily stopping the attack.

"What the heck?!" Sanji looked at Raney's arm.

"You shouldn't be surprised that I am able to stop your kick," Raney said. "You are under the effects of a sleeping potion. You should actually be thankful. We were ordered to kill whoever had Shadow with them."

Sanji growled. He wasn't surprised he was easily stopped in this state. That wasn't what surprised him at all. He was just angry that he fell for this cheep trick.

"But I actually like you guys. Your captain is a lot of fun," Raney said. "If things were different we could actually become real friends."

Sanji growled. Several cursed ran through his mind as the sleeping potion took full effect. He collided with the ground. As his eyes closed he watched Raney's blurry body pick Siria up and head for the ship.

…

Siria's head spun as her senses came back to her. The fog in her mind began to clear. She recalled what happened. Her heart took a sharp jolt when she noticed everything around her smelled painfully familiar, a smell from some time ago, a smell that wasn't of the Sunny or Sanji. She bit back a groan. Shifting she found some cool stone on her neck and hard on her body. She opened her eyes and looked down. The air in her lungs vanished. An explosive collar was on her neck as she lay on the floor of the Eris mansion. A sharp pain shot through her side when a foot collided with her body.

"Wake up!" a familiar male voice snapped. "You've been sleeping long enough, wench!"

"What a filthy girl," another familiar female voice said. "How dare you run from us? And to shack up with pirates? You are such an embarrassment!"

Siria chuckled. She pushed herself into a sitting position. "I didn't run away. And I'm not _shacking up_ with anyone." She looked at the two speaking to her. They looked mostly the same though a bit worn down and way thinner from something.

"Silence!"

Hot stinging shot through Siria's cheek when Clarice slapped her.

"You will not speak to us with such lies to your owners!" Clarice glared.

"I did not lie," Siria said.

"Watch what you say, Shadow!" Romero slammed his boot on her shoulder, pushing her back down to the floor. "You have an explosive collar on you. If you try to escape again you will die this time."

Siria bit back her response. They would never listen to her. She knew that from experience. With a slow breath she calmed herself. "Why have you brought me here?"

"Such a stupid question," Clarice said. "You belong to us."

"You never should have run away from us in the first place," Romero said. "We've spent so much money searching for you." He picked up the chain and jerked her across the floor to the large fireplace. Grabbing her hair he pulled her to his feet. "Look at that! Look!"

Siria winced at the pain but focused her eyes to the mantel. Two pictures with black ribbons crossed over them. She wasn't surprised to see that Cain's picture was up there, but was a little shocked to see his wife. "She…died?"

"It's all your fault!" Romero jerked the chain.

Siria's body spun around before her knees hit the floor. She gritted her teeth at the pain.

"And you're going to pay for it," Clarice added.

"What are you talking about? I had nothing to do with the death of your parents," Siria said.

"And that's why you are an idiot," Romero said. "If our father didn't have to have you around then both of them would still be alive. You caused our father to die out on the ocean. And because of that Mother died from her broken heart."

"You're delusional," Siria said. "You can't keep me here."

"We can." Romero jerked her forward slamming his knee on her face. "I made sure your little pirate friends were taken care of. Even if they did know where you are they won't be able to get here without a log pose to guide them. You're back where you belong. And you will stay here."

Blood dripped down Siria's nose. Her head swayed from the hit.

"We've beefed up security here," Romero said. He drug Siria over to the window. "Look down there."

Siria looked to the mansion grounds. Several men were scattered around the shaggy looking gardens.

"Every single one of them know of your weakness," Romero said.

Siria flinched.

"Every single one of them is a robot," Romero continued. "They have been equipped with lights. If you dare try to escape on us again you will be severally punished."

"And your punishment for escaping the first time starts now." Clarice jammed her heel in Siria's back. "You're going to clean the gardens of weeds. Get to it."

"Take her outside," Romero said to a guard standing near by. "Give her the chain so she can work efficiently."

The guard grabbed the chain to Siria's collar. He tugged her towards the doors. He was over six foot and took long strides. She almost had to run to keep up with him.

The guard dropped the chain then walked way a few steps. He crossed his arms and gave her a nod.

Siria picked up the chain and wrapped it around her shoulders. While she had gotten stronger the chain still pulled on the collar, hurting her beck. She knelt down and started pulling the weeds from the garden. The guards continued to remain close to her. There was no way she could slip from the explosive collar with them around. She eyed them carefully, wondering where the lights were installed on them. "That jerk sure put a lot of thought into keeping me here."

 _"Why are you putting up with all of this?" Bran asked._

"Because I have to. I'm going to wait for the crew to come get us," Siria said. "I know I can easily escape this collar by melting into my shadow. But that still leaves me stranded here. I mean we could steal a ship and leave but neither one of us has navigational skills. We could end up going in the opposite direction of the ship and crew."

 _"Did that sleeping potion destroy part of your brain or something? You heard what that guy said," Bran said. "They need an eternal log pose to get here. They're not coming."_

"They'll get here," Siria said. "There's no way they won't. The Eris family is the only ones after me, expect for the navy of course. Once they figure it out they'll come here. I'm sure they'll find someone who can help them get to this island. They won't leave me behind, especially Sanji. He won't stand for it."

 _"Sometimes your blind faith in him is gag worthy," Bran said._

"Sometimes?" Siria smiled. "Does that mean you're starting to like him?"

 _Bran scoffed but said nothing more._

"Just you wait and see. They will come." Siria looked out to the ocean. "They will."

…

Sanji woke to a beating drum in his ears. He pressed his hand on his forehead before sitting up. A sharp pain shot through his chest. The fog in his brain clear. He remembered what happened. With a strong curse he slammed his fist into the ground.

"Ouch," Usopp said. "My head is killing me. What happened?"  
"I'm not sure," Nami said. "I feel like there's a cloud in my brain."

Sanji glanced at his crewmates. They were all starting to wake up, but for Luffy who was still sleeping and snoring very loudly.

"I feel like I have died," Brook said with a laugh. "But I'm already dead."

"I feel like I have a hang over but I haven't drunk a thing." Zoro rubbed his head.

"We were put to sleep, you idiot," Sanji said. "Raney…he drugged us and took off with Siria."

"What?!" The crew looked around.

"That ship is gone!" Chopper said.

"Dang it," Franky said. "We were fooled!"

"They took Siria?!" Chopper cried. "What are we going to do?! They could have taken her anywhere!"

"I doubt they would take her anywhere," Robin said.

"What do you mean?" Nami asked.

"There's only a few people who know about her powers," Robin said. "The navy's not even sure what all she can do."

"Then that means this was done by her former master? But he's dead! Isn't he?" Usopp said.

"He might be dead, but his family should still be alive." Robin stood and brushed the dirt off her clothes. "They probably took her back to their home."

"I wonder where her former master lives," Nami said.

"If we find a populated island then we should be able to find out," Robin said.

"That would be a huge waste of time," a voice said.

"Who said that?" Usopp looked around until his eyes landed on Brendon. "It's you. Why are you still here?"

"Because I-" Before Brendon could explain Sanji launched at him.

"You have two seconds to tell me who the heck you are!" Sanji hissed. He slammed the man's back against a tree. "Why are you still here?!"

"Calm down. I'm not here to hurt anyone," Brendon said.

"I said to spill it!" Sanji said.

"It's complicated," Brendon said. "I'm in the service of a noble. But not the Eris family."

"I don't care who you are working for! Just tell me where Siria is!" Sanji shook the man.

"I'm trying to tell you! I work for Haruki Kiran!" Brendon narrowed his eyebrows. "Kiran is Siria's twin brother."

Sanji froze.

"What? What did you say?" Nami asked.

"Siria has a twin brother," Brendon said. "He's the one who hired me to help find his sister. There are several of us who have been looking for her for years."

Sanji's hands fell from the man's shirt.

"Are you serious?" Nami asked.

"I am." Brendon nodded.

"So why are you out here looking for her? Where's her brother?" Zoro asked.

"Her brother is unable to look for her. He's not even allowed off the grounds of his house," Brendon said.

"That's extreme. Why not?" Usopp asked.

"Because his, um, their mother is a very strict woman," Brendon said.

"So you know what happened to Siria?" Chopper asked. "Why she was a slave?"

"I do." Brendon nodded. He took a deep breath and continued, "See, Kiran and Siria's family is born with a power of light."

"Of light? Siria uses shadows," Zoro said.

"I know." Brendon clenched his hands. "Those born from the Light Clan that uses shadows are considered a bad omen, a curse. Those children are never wanted. It's said a demon lives inside of them."

"Bran," Robin said.

Brendon shrugged. "I wouldn't know. In our history those born with shadow powers are either killed or sold off. As far as I can tell there's been no actual proof that children born of the shadows are a danger."

"Are you saying that Siria's parents got rid of her became of some stupid superstition?!" Nami gasped.

"I suppose you could say that," Brendon said.

"Why doesn't someone stop it? That's terrible!" Chopper said.

"No one can because Siria and Kiran's bloodline have always been the rulers of our island," Brendon said. "They're not royalty, but they might as well be."

"So Siria's mom sold her to the Eris family?" Brook asked.

Brendon nodded. "Eris Cain knew about the bloodline. And when Siria was born he was more than willing to take her."

"But how did her brother know about her if their mother gotten rid of her when she was born?" Zoro asked.

"He didn't know about her until I told him. And I only happen to know about her because my own parents spoke of her once," Brendon said. "At first I didn't think it was true. My family has always been in the service of the Light family for generations. Growing up with Kiran I noticed he always seemed to be empty. Often he would stare out at the horizon and mumble things about his _other half_."

"I heard that twins often have a form of telepathy between them," Robin said. "So it's possible that he sensed it."

"Do you think Siria did too?" Nami asked.

"It's possible. Though she did grow up differently than her brother," Robin said.

"She has," Sanji said. "Back in the Kamabaka Kingdom. She started having dreams about twins being born and one of them…" He gritted his teeth. "I think Siria was having a vision about her birth."

"Is that even possible?" Chopper asked.

"That's crazy!" Usopp said.

"Kiran did mention this to his parents a couple times. For a while they said that he was crazy, that he didn't have a sister. Eventually they got tired of him asking and would punish him severely if he asked or spoke of it again," Brendon said. "One day he had enough and secretly asked some people he knew he could trust to go look for her."

"That's a big long shot to take," Nami said.

"I know." Brendon sighed. "I would have much preferred to get Kiran off that island and away from his parents, but he too strictly guarded. It's impossible."

"Siria's not going to like this information," Zoro said.

"What are we going to do now?" Nami asked.

"We can't do anything unless we know how to get to Siria," Franky said.

"I can take you to her," Brendon said. He dug into his pocket and produced an eternal pose. "When I joined up with Raney I was given one of these in case I found Siria on my own."

"This is great!" Nami said. "We can now go after her!"

"What about the Eris family?" Usopp said. "Are they very strong?"  
"No." Brendon shook his head. "They are just normal people. I'm not sure about their bodyguards though. I did hear that Cain's son was constructing some robots installed with lights that would keep Siria from using her shadows."

"Just great," Sanji said. "That means she'll be stuck even if she can get away from them."

"Who cares?" Zoro said. "Let's just go get her already."

"Right." Sanji looked at his crew. "We're getting her back no matter what."

"Of course we are!" Chopper said. "Siria's our friend!"

"Wake up, you idiot!" Sanji dropped his heel on Luffy's head.

Luffy snorted and sat up, his hat lopsided on his head. "What is it? What's going on?"

"You were asleep this whole time?" Zoro asked.

"You're never going to change are you?" Usopp said. He bent down to Luffy's level. "Listen, Siria's been kidnapped by Raney. She's back with her former owner's family. We're going to save her now."

"What?!" Luffy screamed. He jumped to his feet, enraged. "Let's go! He won't get away with this! Set sail!"

"Is he really your captain?" Brendon asked.

The Straw Hats sighed. "Yes. He is."

…

Siria sighed heavily. Rolling onto her back she placed her arm over her eyes in hopes to block out all the lights shining at her. It was no use. The lights were just too bright. Her new _masters_ weren't taking any chances with her this time. She forced herself to sit up. Slipping on the sunglasses they did give her she headed for the bathroom, which was also filled with many lights.

Despite her sunglasses she could see how drained she was from all the work they had forced on her these past six days. Hard work with little sleep was starting to wear on her. "I'd like to say this is worse than training with Iva but at least he let me rest."

 _"Where are those idiot Straw Hats of yours?" Bran asked._

"It's going to take them longer to get here," Siria said. "I over heard Romero and Clarice gloating how their new ships helped get me here faster. Their ships have some form of engine on them. They don't have to wait for the wind to blow."

 _"And we have no idea how long it'll take for them to get here." Bran sighed. "Wonderful."_

"It won't be much longer," Siria said.

A click from her bedroom alerted her it was time to get up. The door opened. "Get out here, slave!"

Siria gripped the sink before leaving the room. Romero greeted her with a glare. She ignored it while placing her sunglasses down on the dresser.

"Eat your breakfast and get to work." Romero shoved her down the hall.

Siria dropped her eyes to the carpet. More holes appeared to be in the fabric than the day before. In her time spent here she also noticed other things that were different. There wasn't as many staff. Dust had gathered on books, shelves, picture frames, and the walls. She tried to listen in on the siblings to find out what happened but if they spoke about it they did it when she was outside or in bed. But it didn't take a genius to figure out what was going on. The Eris family was losing their money. Or lost it. Romero did say they made all those robots with the lights and ships with engines. Surely that had to cost quiet a lot. She just didn't know how much of a financial lost it caused them.

"Romero!" Clarice hissed.

They stepped into the dinning room to find the woman.

"What is it now?" Romero asked.

Clarice glanced at Siria then signaled for her brother to come closer.

"Stay there, Shadow." Romero walked over to his sister. He leaned in as Clarice started talking to him.

Siria carefully watched them. She wanted to send out a shadow squirrel but didn't dare. For her to hear what they were saying she would need the squirrel on their shoulder, table, or chair. They'd noticed it there.

By the time Clarice was finished talking a dark shadow fell over Romero's face. Clearly something bad had happened. Romero stalked back over to Siria. He grabbed her and shoved her towards the kitchen. "Make us breakfast. And don't pull anything stupid. Clarice is moving some guards in the kitchen to watch you."

"Wonderful." Siria entered into the kitchen. Instantly she noticed the lack of cooking tools. Opening a cabinet she also found a lot of empty space. "How much money trouble are they having?"

A few minutes of looking she managed to find enough food to fix some pancakes and sausage. She was grateful for learning how to cook. If she didn't she knew a punishment would happen. The kitchen door swung opened.

"Aren't you finished yet?!" Clarice snapped.

"Yes. It's done." Siria sat the last glass of orange juice on the kitchen trolley and pushed them out to the dinning room. She placed the siblings share on the table before taking her place on the floor in the corner of the room.

"This is gross," Clarice said a few minutes later. "You're a pathetic cook!"

"Then learn to do it yourself," Siria mumbled.

Romero scowled but said nothing. Once done he finally said, "You're working inside today. I want this mansion spotless! Don't you dare miss a single speck of dirt or dust. Get going!"

"Do this dishes too. And toss out this garbage food." Clarice shoved her plate across the table. It clanked against her glass, tipping it over. A piece of glass chipped off. "Idiot! Be careful! You could have hurt me!"

Siria clenched her teeth. Clarice was worse than she remembered. And she couldn't recall Clarice missing a single meal. Pulling her eyes from the partially eaten food, Sanji would have a fit about that, she noticed that Clarice's formerly plump figure had slimmed down. And since the young woman didn't do any kind of work for herself she knew it came from not eating. Siria wondered if the Eris business went under. She gathered up the dishes before cleaning them and getting to work on cleaning the mansion.

…

"We're finally here," Brendon said looking down at the eternal pose.

"About time," Usopp said. "So what's the plan?"

"Considering we have no idea how many soldiers or guards the Eris family has we should probably sneak in and see what's going on," Brendon said.

"Gum Gum Rocket!" Luffy flung himself toward the island.

"What the heck is he doing?!" Brendon screamed.

"Being Luffy," Nami said.

"Might as well follow him once we drop anchor," Franky said. "You're going to have to lead us to where Siria is."

"It's not hard to find." Brendon pointed to the island. "See that mansion just beyond the town? That's where she'll be."

"Great." Sanji stepped out of the kitchen. His eyes glared out at the mansion. He gripped the railing. His heart thumped in sync with the second as they got closer to their destination. Finally the ship docked. Franky dropped the anchor. He leapt off the ship and ran towards the mansion. The others called to him but he didn't stop.

…

Siria ran her cloth over the picture window. Movement caught her attention. She looked up. The gates to the mansion flew off their hinges. A smile formed on her lips at the sight of a familiar hat that appeared where the gate used to be. "Luffy!"

The gate hit the ground, alerting the siblings to the new arrival.

"What the heck is going on?!" Clarice asked. She stood from her chair, book in hand, and walked over to the window. Luffy punched one of the robots. "Who is that?"

"Siria!" Luffy screamed out. "I'm here!"

"That is your worse nightmare," Siria said. "And more are about to come."

"What are you babbling about, idiot?" Romero walked over.

"My crew is here. And I'm leaving." Siria walked towards the door.

Romero cursed at her. He grabbed her arm and jerked her back. "You're not going anywhere! We own you!"

"You can't own a person. I'm leaving," Siria said.

Romero's eyes flashed with anger. He reached up to slap her.

Siria smirked. Just before his hand could land on her she sunk down into her shadow. The collar and chain clanked onto the floor.

"No! Stop her!" Clarice screamed. "Stop her!"

"Robot, stop her!" Romero ordered.

Siria slipped her shadow up the robot. Squeezing as tightly as she could the robot crunched, bending into itself. She reformed. "You shouldn't put so much into robots. They're easily broken if not made properly." She ran to the door. "See you! I'm never coming back here again!"

"Romero! Do something!" Clarice said.

Siria clung the door open. Luffy had several robots shattered into billions of little pieces. "Luffy!"

"Siria!" Luffy waved with both hands and a grin. "We're here to save you!"

"I know!" Siria rushed to him. Lights washed over her. "These robots are equipped with lights!"

"I know!" Luffy slammed his fist into another one. It cracked and snapped before crumbling to the ground. The light went out.

"How do you know that?" Siria bent down and launched herself into the air. Falling back down she slammed her heel into a robot's head, smashing it completely.

"Wow!" Luffy said. "How did you manage to do that?!"

"Told you I got stronger." Siria smiled.

"You sure did! Gum Gum Gatlin!" Luffy smashed six more robots.

A scream came from the mansion. The pirates turned to see the siblings standing there. Clarice's face was white. "Stop it! Do you have any idea how much those cost?! Shadow! I order you to stop!"

"Shut up!" Luffy said. "Siria isn't your slave! She's our friend!"

"And she's coming back with us!"

Siria's heart fluttered at the sound of Sanji's voice. "Sanji!"

Sanji walked up to her. He lifted her chin with his fingers. Anger flashed through his eyes at the bruise on her cheek. "Who did that?"

"Romero," Siria said.

Sanji looked to the siblings and right at Romero. "I take it that's _you_."

Romero took a step back.

"That's him." Siria leaned into Sanji, breathing in his scent.

Sanji talked over to Romero.

Siria wanted to look away but she forced herself to watch as Sanji slammed his feet into Romero's face with multiple kicks.

When he was done, Sanji picked up Romero by his shirt. "Don't you ever come near her again." He walked back over to Siria, picked her up, and headed back towards the ship as Luffy smashed up the rest of the robots. "Let's go home."

"Suits me fine." Siria snuggled into him.

"Hey!" Usopp called a few minutes later.

Siria looked up to see the rest of the crew running towards them, but for Robin.

"You're all right!" Chopper said.

"What happened? What about the enemy?" Zoro asked.

"They were pathetically weak," Luffy said. "We took care of them."

"You could have waited for me." Zoro frowned.

"At least Siria is safe," Nami said.

"You've got some bruises," Chopper said.

"I'm fine," Siria said. Her eyes went to Brendon. "What's he doing here?!"

"Hold on. He helped us get to you," Nami said.

"He did?" Siria looked at the navigator.

"We'll explain back on the ship," Nami said.

"Where's Robin?" Siria asked.

"Robin?" Brook asked. "She was here a moment ago."

"Let's get back to the ship," Sanji said. "I'm sure we'll find her."

The crew headed back towards the ship. Halfway there they found Robin talking to a man. She smiled then joined the rest of them. "Siria, I'm glad to see you're okay."

"Robin," Siria said.

"Where did you disappear to?" Usopp asked.

"Gathering information," Robin said.

"What did you find out?" Nami asked as they continued to the ship.

"It seems that since Eris Cain did his business went under not long after he died," Robin said. "His son was suppose to take over but didn't have the skills his father did. His kids spent the majority of their fortune in an attempt to get Siria back."

"I wondered if that's what happened to them," Siria said.

"How did you know?" Brook asked.

"Things were different. They didn't have any maids. Their cook quit this morning. The mansion is rundown," Siria said. "I guess their parents never did teach them any worth while skills."

"Who cares? They're part of the past now and they'll never take you away from me again," Sanji said.

"Sorry I worried you." Siria cupped Sanji's face.

"Hey, we came too," Usopp said.

"They seemed to be lost in each other right now," Brook said with a laugh.

Finally they reached the ship. Sanji sat down with Siria on the mast bench before telling her everything Brendon told them.

"I see. So that's what happened to me," Siria said.

"I'm sorry," Brendon said.

Siria shook her head. "Don't worry about it. There was nothing you could do."

"So what now?" Chopper asked.

Siria thought about that question for a moment before looking at Luffy. "Luffy, can I ask you a favor?"

"Hm?" Luffy looked at her then smiled. "You want to rescue your brother."

Siria nodded.

"Brendon, can you get us there?" Luffy looked at the man.

"Of course I can. I have an eternal pose for that island too," Brendon said.

"All right," Luffy said. "We're going to get Siria's brother!"


	20. Past & Future

Past & Future

Siria groaned with pleasure as Sanji's tongue danced through her mouth. Shifting her position she straddled over him and wrapped her arms around his neck. Her lungs burned. Reluctantly she pulled away from him, drawing in several breaths as Sanji continued to kiss over her skin and down to her neck. Hitting her soft stop she arched into him. "S-Sanji…"

"Sorry," Sanji mumbled against her neck.

Siria shivered at his warm breath washing over her skin.

"I missed you so much." Sanji sucked her neck again.

Siria giggled. "I've been back for over a week now."

"I don't care." Sanji lightly bit down on her. "I'm going to continue to kiss you until I feel like stopping."

"I know," Siria said. "You've been kissing me since I got back."

"Do you want me to stop?" Sanji asked.

"No." Siria ran her fingers through his hair. "I just don't want to go too far too fast. Or too soon."

Sanji pulled back. "Are you worried we might cross that line?"

"I don't know," Siria said. "I do love you. And you make my body so hot. I guess I'm not sure if I'm ready for that yet."

Sanji nodded. "Don't worry." His eyes lingered on the bruise that was fading from her cheek. "I won't hurt you or force you to do anything you don't want to do."

Siria press her forehead to his. "One of the many reasons I love you. You're amazing."

"You are the amazing one. You put up with tall that crap from the Eris family twice." Sanji ran his hands down her sides.

Siria sighed.

"Something on your mind?" Sanji asked.

"My brother," Siria said. "I'm second guessing all of this. What if he doesn't want to meet with me?"  
"Don't be stupid," Sanji said. "Of course he does. And it's his choice whether he comes with us or stays behind."

"I know. But I'm worried about either out come," Siria said. "If he stays then he'll have to continued to live with his parents' control. And if he does come he won't be familiar with how to fight."

"It's not like you knew how to fight when you first came here," Sanji said.

"I know," Siria said. "But we got lucky, in a way, to get all that training from our friends back in the Kamabaka Kingdom."

"I'm sure it'll be fine," Sanji said. "After all we're in the New World. That mean's your brother is familiar with the events here."

"I guess you're right," Siria said. "I know he can use his light powers to blind people attacking him."

"And he can create shadows for you," Sanji said.

"I never thought of that," Siria said.

"So stop worrying. Everything will be fine," Sanji said.

"Yeah." Siria smiled.

A knock came on the door. Brook said, "Hey, we're about to arrive."

"Thank you, Brook," Siria said. They stood and left the room. Gathering on the deck with the rest of the crew, they sat down beside each other on the mast bench. "So are we all ready to do this?"  
"Yeah!" The crew nodded.

"I just hope it works. I really don't want to fight a bunch of people with light powers," Usopp said. "I had enough of that two years ago with Kizaru."

"At least this time we're more familiar with such powers," Brook said. He pulled sunglass down over his eyeholes. "And we're prepared."

"They can still knock off our sunglasses or make the light too bright for them," Usopp said.

"I just hope Siria gets enough time with her brother," Chopper said.

"Bringing him to my house should give them enough time to talk," Brendon said. "But I will ask the cook to prepare the master and mistress's nightcap with sleeping potion just in case."

"Just don't get yourself into trouble," Siria said.

"Don't worry," Franky said. "We've got him covered."

"It'll be fine," Nami said. "You just focus on your brother. We'll handle the rest of your family."

"That sounds so weird. You all are my family," Siria said.

"And we always will be." Sanji squeezed her hand.

"How do you know this cook will do it?" Usopp asked.

"Because she's my wife," Brendon said.

"Oh." Usopp nodded. "Okay then."

Just as they pulled up to the island the moon was high in the sky. Siria's exhaled. She was glad they made it here at night. The chance was much lower of getting caught. Brendon didn't know for sure if anyone would notice her. So they didn't want to take any chances. A few minutes later the ship pulled into the harbor. The crew followed Brendon through the alleyways of the town. A large statue caught Siria's eyes. She paused to look at it.

"That's the statue of the first person to ever have the light power," Brendon said. "Our history says he founded this island and town."

"One of Siria's ancestors," Robin said. "Interesting."

"Let's go," Siria said. They continued walking. Her eyes darted around the town. It looked like any other town she had seen before. The houses and buildings varied in shapes and sizes. A few people lingered on the streets. Their cheerful voices mixed with the crickets. Trembling she reached for Sanji's hand. His warm rushed over at the connection of their skin. She relaxed. They reached the edge of the town and headed up a winding path to a two-story house looking over the town. The windows were dark signally no one was home.

Brendon turned on the light upon entering the building. "You all wait in here. I'll go tell my wife the plan. If all goes well Kiran will be here about ten o'clock. Help yourself to anything you need."

"Thanks," Siria said before he left them. The rest of the crew scattered around the living room while she remained on her feet and paced. Several times her eyes went to the moon to check the time. She was on her fifteenth glance when Sanji pulled her to the couch with him.

"Calm down," Sanji said. "You're going to worry yourself sick."

"I'm sorry," Siria said. "Maybe we shouldn't have-"

"No." Sanji placed his finger on her lips to silence her. "You're not going to second guess this again. You're just nervous. Calm down and breath."

Siria nodded. She drew in a breath and slowly exhaled it. Before much longer Luffy fell asleep. His snoring filled up the otherwise silent room.

"Typical." Nami huffed.

Siria leaned against Sanji's shoulder and closed her eyes, falling asleep in the process.

…

"Hey, Siria," Sanji called. "Wake up."

"Hm?" Siria looked up at him.

"It's almost time," Sanji said.

"Oh." Siria sat up. The last five minutes flew by. She fiddled with her fingers as she waited for the door to open. Any second now her past and future were about to collide. The doorknob turned. Her lungs squeezed. She clung to Sanji's arm. They stood up together. The door opened. Brendon stood there with a black hair woman and a young man with blonde hair and light blue eyes. She swallowed.

His eyes found hers. They widened. "It's you."

"Uh, yeah. Hi." Siria gave him a timid wave.

Kiran rushed over to her.

Siria opened her mouth to speak but he threw his arms around her.

"You're really here!" Kiran hugged her tightly.

Siria stiffened in his hold for a minute before relaxing. She hesitantly wrapped her arms around his waist.

"We should give them time alone to talk," Robin said.

"Let's go." Zoro grabbed Luffy's ankle and pulled him outside. The captain kept snoring. The door closed.

"I can't believe you're actually here." Kiran held her at arms length. His eyes scanned over her then narrowed on her cheek. "Are you hurt?"  
"Oh that." Siria touched her cheek. "Don't worry about it. Just a bruise."

Kiran nodded slowly.

"So…we're siblings, huh?" Siria said.

"Yeah. Twins. I can't believe it," Kiran said.

"It's hard for me to believe it too," Siria said. "But I can tell that we really are twins."

"I can feel it too." Kiran smiled. "I'm so happy we could meet."

"Me too," Siria said.

"And I'm sorry our parents got rid of you," Kiran said taking her hands in his. "I don't agree with them on that. If I knew sooner I would have tried to come find you."

"I know." Siria nodded. "Brendon told us all about it. And it's okay. I don't blame you. You were also a baby at the time."

"I wish I could change that," Kiran said. "I want you to stay here. Now that you're back I don't want you to ever leave."

Siria's heart thumped. "I'm sorry. Even if I could…" She looked at the door before looking back at her brother. "I belong with the Straw Hats now."

"You don't want to stay with me?" Kiran's smile vanished. His arms fell to his sides.

"It's not that I don't want to, I do want to stay," Siria said. "It's just that Sanji and I are a couple. And if our parents didn't want me then there's no way they're going to let me stay. I've already accepted they hate me."

"I see," Kiran said. "I guess I can't argue with that. To them it's like you don't exist. But I know they remember you."

"You could come with us," Siria blurted out. She flinched when he gave her a confused look. She hadn't meant to blurt that out. "Sorry. I met to ease that into the conversation not just jump right in."

"It's okay," Kiran said. "I actually thought to leave many times before." He paused before continuing. "Tried a couple of times. But our parents, especially our mother, are just so controlling. Escaping might not be so easy."

"I'm not asking you to decide right now," Siria said. "We're going to stay here a few days. I know this is a big decision. We're both overwhelmed. But one thing we know for sure is I can't live here if your…if our family despises me."

"It's not really you they despise. It's what you can do," Kiran said.

"I don't understand why they think of me like that," Siria said. "I have control over my powers now."

"That's good to hear," Kiran said with a smile. "I'm glad you're flourishing."

"I wasn't always." Siria gave him a quick summary of her life.

"You were a slave?"

Siria nodded. "That's why I'm so grateful to the Straw Hats. They saved me."

"I see." Kiran lowered his eyes to the floor.

"I know this is new to us both, but they have already said you can sail with us," Siria said. "Of course that would make you a pirate."

"A pirate?" Kiran's eyebrow rose.

"Do you not pay attention to the newspapers?" Siria asked.

"I do but I was too busy looking for you to care about anything else," Kiran said.

"That's right. Brendon mentioned something about that," Siria said.

"So what's it like being a pirate?" Kiran asked.

"Well, it's tough. But we also have a lot of fun." Siria waved to the couch. "Let's sit." They sat down and she told them about some of their adventures. "And that's basically how it is."

"Wow. Sounds amazing yet scary," Kiran said.

"It is." Siria nodded. "So what are your fist impressions?"  
"I think you're amazing having gone through all of that," Kiran said. "Though I'm not sure if it's the life for me."

"I understand." Siria sighed.

"But I still want to get to know you. You said you're going to stay here a few days, right?"

"We can stay for four days," Siria said. "Think you can make a decision in that time?"

"I'm sure I can," Kiran said. "But my, our parents won't let me go so willingly."

"You don't have to worry about that. My crew is really strong," Siria said. "If you really want to leave this place then we'll get you out of here."

"Are you sure? None of them looked that strong to me," Kiran said. "In fact they all looked rather thin."

"I assure you they are strong," Siria said. "Would you like to meet them?"  
"No. I'm not interested in getting to know them," Kiran said.

"Oh, um, well," Siria said, slightly confused.

"But I will if I join your crew," Kiran said. "We will, after all, be living together."

"That's true." Siria nodded. She spent another hour along with her brother before calling her crew back inside. Over the next couple of hours they spoke about how they were going to try and get Kiran to the ship.

"I should get back now," Kiran said.

Siria nodded.

Kiran hugged her before he took off.

Siria watched him go from the window, wondering if they could really pull this off in such a short amount of time and without anyone getting blinded.

…

Siria adjusted her sunglass on her nose for the hundredth time in fifteen minutes. Their plan had already been started. Her crew was heading over to Kiran's house to break him out. She wanted to go but they all figured it would be better if she didn't. Despite not having been seen for years they were certain her parents would know who she was. Since she was a _cursed_ child anyone would probably notice her. And every time someone came close to the ship she had to duck down and keep hidden until they were gone.

Her part in the plan was to basically over look the town from the Sunny and not get involved. She had no idea if that would work. Luffy always managed to mess things up some how. And this was her brother they were trying to free. She gulped when a blast came from the town. Smoke rose up from her brother's house. She wondered what happened.

It shouldn't be much longer until the crew came running to the ship with her brother with them.

But something was wrong. She could feel it.

 _"Be ready," Bran told her._

He had sensed it too.

Suddenly multiple light beams came down on the Sunny. The light faded revealing fifteen people surrounding her.

"Crap." Siria stood ready. She eyed all fifteen of them until her eyes landed on someone that struck her as familiar, and not just because the woman shared the same facial features with her and Kiran. Her eyes widened. "It's you."

"How cute." The woman smiled coldly. "The freak noticed who I am. I'm touched."

Siria shivered at a cold chill running down her spine. This woman, the woman who gave birth to her, was very cold, heartless. There was no other way for her to describe it.

"I had a feeling you would come and try to destroy my family someday." Rachel, if Siria remembered the correct name Kiran gave her, eyed her up and down. She hummed. "Not exactly what I was expecting. I figured you'd look worse."

Siria clenched her fits.

"In fact, I'll make that happened!" Rachel shot her hand out. "I'll make you regret coming here!"

Siria dodged a light beam.

"Attack!" Rachel ordered.

The other fourteen lifted their hands. Suddenly Sanji came out of the ship and kicked them down. He landed beside Siria. "You okay?"

"Yeah." Siria nodded.

"Oh, it has friends." Rachel shook her head. "No matter. You can't beat us."

"We'll see about that," Sanji said before charging into battle. He kicked people and jumped to avoid their attacks. Thanks to his observation haki he got a small leg up on them.

Siria faced off with her mother.

"Cute. He'll fight for you too." Rachel fired at her.

Siria flew into the air.

"Not so fast!" Rachel leaped up into the air. She spun around and landed her heel on Siria's shoulder.

Siria gasped at the strength the tall, thin woman had. She went flying back to the ship deck. She forced herself to sit up.

"Did that surprise you?" Rachel flipped her hair over her shoulder. "Did you think we only used our light to fight? That was a foolish mistake."

Siria gritted her teeth. She was at a serious disadvantage being surrounded like this and not understanding how strong everyone really was here. Her eyes started to wander away from her mother to the sounds of her crew fights coming closer. Quickly she caught herself. She knew she had to keep focused. Her crew would be just fine. They would be here soon and they could leave. They would get away. Somehow.

"You," Rachel snapped. "Why did you come back here?"

"Come back? I never choose to leave!" Siria snapped back. " _You_ two are the ones who got rid of me because of some stupid superstition! Because I didn't _belong_ among the light!"

"You're a curse! Look at what you've done to our home!" Rachel waved her hand around at the destruction her crew had caused. "This wouldn't have happened if you didn't come back here! We want nothing to do with you!"

"You're delusional! I didn't do anything wrong! I didn't ask for these shadow abilities! Why blame me from something I have no control over?! And my crew is _liberating_ my twin brother! You have no right to hold him here!" Siria said. "We will be a family on our own!"

"I'm protecting him! I don't want him to fall under your curse!" Rachel said. "You already tried to take my husband away from me when you were born!"

"What are you talking about?"

"He wanted to keep you despite knowing what you were," Rachel spat. "But I set him straight. A curse like you should never have been born. You should have just been killed from the start."

"I'm not cursed!" Siria shouted. Her shadows jumped up around her before merging with her body. She flapped her wings. "Kiran wants to leave! And I'm going to help him get away from here!"

Rachel clenched her fists, her eyes burning with rage. "I won't let you take my son away from me! Everyone attack!" She rushed forward. Throwing her hand out a bright flash of light shot towards Siria.

Siria swiped her hand, bringing a shield of shadow up.

Another light beam broke through her shield. Again and again they shot light beams at her, breaking through her shadow shields.

 _"This isn't working," Bran said._

"I've noticed." Siria dodged a kick from behind. As she landed her leg was kicked out from under her. She gasped. A hand knocked off her sunglasses. Rachel was hovering over her.

The woman shoved her hand towards Siria's eyes. "Stay away from my son!"

The light stuck into her eyes before she could close them. Her surroundings were replaced with a bright white light before fading to black. The voices of her crew screamed out to her, but she found herself unable to respond.

…

 _"Mama! Mama!"_

 _Siria rolled onto her back to the sound of two small voices calling for her._

 _"Mama! Wake up!" Sound of feet rumbled into the room. The bed shifted._

 _Siria opened her eyes. Two pairs of blue eyes stared down at her. Their curly eyebrows twitched with annoyance. Their blond hair pulled back in identical pigtails._

 _"Mama!" they said._

 _"What is it?" Siria asked._

 _"It's almost time!" they said._

 _"Time for what?" Siria asked._

 _"Mama, how could you have forgotten?!" They puffed up their cheeks._

 _Siria giggled. "I didn't forget. I know what today is. But we still have plenty of time."_

 _"But he'll be here any minute!" they said._

 _"Are you two bothering your mother again?"_

 _All three looked to the door. Sanji leaned against it with a smirk._

 _"Daddy!" The girls got off the bed and ran over to him._

 _"I told you to let your mother sleep," Sanji said. "She's really tired."_

 _"But Uncle Luffy's coming today!" they said._

 _"I know he is," Sanji said. "But he's not coming until later."_

 _"Not fair!" The girls pouted. "We want to see him now!"_

 _Sanji chuckled. "You have to have patience. Go play now and let mommy rest."_

 _"Okay."_

 _Sanji sat the girls down. They disappeared out of the room. He walked over and sat down on the edge of the bed. "Sorry about that. I turned around for a second and they were gone."_

 _"It's okay." Siria covered a yawn. "They're just excited."_

 _"I know." Sanji placed his hand on Siria's rounding stomach. "But you need to rest. This little one is causing you so much trouble."_

 _"I'm fine." Siria placed her hand over his. "It's not like I haven't done this before. And he's just restless. He's not going to be like his sisters wielding light."_

 _Sanji nodded. "I'm still worried. Anything could go wrong."_

 _"You're sweet." Siria smiled._

 _"Siria? Siria?"_

…

 _"Siria? Siria?_ Siria?!"

Siria shifted. His voice remained distant in her ears. With each call of her name his voice became clearer and clearer.

"Come on, Siria! Open your eyes! Please! Siria!"

Siria opened her eyes. Dark spots lingered in her vision. Slowly it began to fade away with each blinked she took. Sanji's worried expression finally appeared in her vision. His soft hand cupped her cheek. "Sanji?"

"You're okay." Sanji relaxed.

"Let me see." Chopper leaned close to Siria's face. "Looks like her eye sight is going to be okay. I'm so glad." Tears formed in his eyes. "I was so worried about you. I thought you were going to be blinded for life!"

"What happened?" Siria asked.

"Your mother attempted to blind you." Sanji took her hand and helped her sit up.

"That's right. Wait! What about Kiran?!" Siria looked around the infirmary. "We're on the ship? What happened?"

"He's fine. He's on the deck with the others," Sanji said. "We managed to escape thanks to Bran's help. A massive cloud passed over her at the right time. He managed to shield you long enough for us to get you away. And he managed to protect your eyes. So you're not going to go blind."

"I see," Siria said. She searched inside of herself for her shadow friend. She found him deep asleep. "He's worn out."

"I should say so," Sanji said. "It looked like he was really struggling against all the light."

Siria placed her hand over her heart. "Then he deserves a good long rest."

"We got really lucky," Chopper said. "Our sneak attack caused a lot of confusion with the people of the island. They weren't prepared for a fight like that, especially with Luffy."

"I'm glad we took into account their light as a weakness," Siria said. "And that we had experience fighting against Kizaru."

"Yeah. I don't want to know what would have happened if we didn't really plan for this," Sanji said.

Siria swung her legs over the side of the bed.

"Are you feeling well enough to get out of bed?" Sanji asked.

"Yes. I'm fine," Siria said standing up.

Sanji stood up with her, his eyes roaming over her.

"I'm okay." Siria patted his chest. "I want to go see my brother."

"All right." Sanji offered her his arm and guided her out of the infirmary with Chopper following. Sounds of an argument greeted them the closer they got to the deck.

"What's going on?" Chopper asked.

"Only one way to find out." Sanji led them forward. They looked below to see Usopp and Luffy arguing.

"I'm telling you we do not need cushions like that!" Usopp said.

"What?! Yes, we do! It would be awesome!" Luffy said.

"They're arguing over cushions?" Siria blinked.

"Hey, Siria," Robin said. "You're looking better."

"I'm feeling better," Siria said as they walked down the stairs. "So what's going on here?"  
"Your brother was complaining about the lack of comfort on the ship," Nami said. "He suggested really large cushions. And Luffy agreed."

"I see." Siria looked to her brother. He was sitting on the mast bench.

"Honestly, Siria." Kiran stood and walked over to her. "I have no idea how you can deal with all this." He waved his hand around, gesturing at the ship, before snapping his fingers. "Hey! Cook! Bring me something to drink. I am thirsty."

"I might be the cook but I'm not your servant!" Sanji snapped.

"Looks like Kiran has a lot of learning to do if he's going to blend in with us," Usopp said.

"He's been waited on hand and foot his whole life," Brook said. "It's going to take time to get use to being a normal person."

"That's why we should get the cushions!" Luffy said. "It'll make things better for him and the Sunny!"

Usopp slapped Luffy on the cheek with the back of his hand. "Just shut up."

"Sanji, will you pleasing bring us something to drink?" Siria asked.

"Fine. I'll do it for you." Sanji pecked her lips before heading to the kitchen.

"Thank you." Siria took her brother's arm and steered him back over to the bench. "Kiran, you're not living in a mansion anymore. You can't order the crew around like that."

"I can't?" Kiran blinked.

"No, you can't." Siria patted his arm. "But you'll learn. Things are going to be very different from now on. You're going to have to do a lot of stuff for yourself."

"Yeah." Kiran rubbed his neck. "I'm sorry. I guess I am use to living a certain way."

"It'll be fine," Luffy said. "And a lot of fun. You're going to love it here."

"I made drinks for everyone." Sanji returned a few minutes later with a tray balancing on his hand. He passed them out then sat beside Siria.

Siria watched him. The dream, or vision, she had about them being parents flowed back into her mind. "You know." Sanji looked at her. "You're going to make a great father."

Sanji snorted his drink through his nose. "What?!"

"Huh?" The crew paused and looked at her.

"What?" Kiran's eyes narrowed onto Sanji.

"What a second! Don't give me that look! We've only kissed!" Sanji said.

"I don't care what you are to her!" Kiran grabbed for Sanji but the cook leaped away from him. "You had better not get her pregnant until you've married her!"

"That's none of your business!" Sanji whipped around and faced the man. "If we want to have sex then we will have sex!"

Kiran's face reddened from shock and probably embarrassment before screaming out again and chasing after Sanji while screaming how he was going to castrate the cook.

"Well, things sure got more lively on the ship," Robin said.

"Maybe I shouldn't have said that," Siria said.

"Why did you say it?" Zoro asked.

"Well, when I was out of it, I had this dream or something about us having twin girls. I was pregnant with our third child," Siria said. "I couldn't help but thing how natural Sanji would be as a dad. It just kind of came out."

"How interesting," Robin said.

"Do you think it's possible we'll have twins? I mean if we do get married and all," Siria said.

"I say it's highly possible," Chopper said. "You and Kiran are twins after all. They probably run in your family."

Siria hummed in thought. Her eyes went back to Sanji and Kiran. She knew Sanji could easily defeat her brother, but instead he continued to run away from Kiran. She smiled. Things were definitely going to get more interesting now.

…

 **Author's Notes: I'm burning out. That's why these last few chapters are so bad. So I don't know if I'll continue from this point with this story.**


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